Tempting Fate
by Reader.Writer.TVLover
Summary: When Rose moved to New York City to be closer to Christian and Lissa, she was blindsided when the only man she'd ever loved walked back into her life. AU/AH
1. Chapter 1

_a/n: This is the follow up story to 'Fated.' There will be references to Rose and Dimitri's past, so I think reading that one will make this one more enjoyable :)_

_Roza and Dimitri _will _get their HEA in this one._

_Thanks again to Anonymous Kaity for the title, and to everyone who took the time to review Fated! You guys make me wish I could write a mile a minute!_

* * *

**prologue**

* * *

"How was your first day at the new job?" Lissa asked as Rose grabbed a can of soda from the refrigerator and followed her into the living room.

Rose shrugged as she sat down on the couch. "Typical."

"What does that mean?" her friend pressed.

"It means that it was just like my very first day at my last job," Rose answered evasively.

Lissa sighed. "You would think that with my psychology degree I'd be able to get you to open up."

Rose laughed. "It was amazing," she said gushingly. "I think I'm going to be BFF's with the girl at the front counter. Her name is Courtney, and—hey!" Rose said, rubbing her arm where Lissa had just socked her.

"_I'm_ your BFF," she said with a pout. "And pipe down, or you're gonna wake the baby."

Rose leaned forward and peered into the bassinet at the mention of Lissa and Christian's new baby. She felt the now familiar leap in her chest at the sight of him sleeping soundly, his little cheek resting on a yellow blanket. She'd just put her arms forward to reach in and pick him up when she felt Lissa's hand on her forearm. "If you wake him up, I will kill you," she warned.

Rose grinned. "No, you won't. I'm your BFF."

Lissa gave her a glare, but Rose didn't care as she lifted Zander into her arms and cuddled him against her chest with a contented sigh.

Christian laughed as he walked into the room. "I will never get over the site of Rosemarie Hathaway holding a baby," he mused as he fumbled with the tie around his neck. "_Willingly_."

"But he's just so _cute,"_ she said.

"Rumor has it he looks like his father," Christian joked, then turned to his wife. "Lissa...help."

Lissa leaped up off the couch and pushed her husband's hands out of the way, then expertly knotted his tie for him.

Rose watched the exchange with a pang of envy; she hadn't realized how much she'd missed her friends until she'd arrived in New York City a few weeks ago.

Lissa reached for the rolled up sleeves on her husband's forearms and unrolled them, then fastened the cuffs at his wrists.

"What are you doing?" he asked in confusion.

She smiled up at him. "You look _way_ too sexy like that for me to let you leave this house and go wait on drunk women. No skin," she insisted firmly.

"Are you...kidding?" he asked, and Rose had to bite back a laugh.

Lissa shook her head. "Christian, I'm sporting a baby belly and inflated breasts. If I can't look sexy, then I forbid you to."

Christian arched a brow at her. "Lissa, you know I love the-"

She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. "Do you mind if Rose spends the night tonight?" she interrupted sweetly.

"Hon," he said in disbelief.

Lissa bit her lip and turned to Rose, a teasing grin on her face. "I got cleared to have sex today."

"Like I needed to know that," Rose muttered.

Lissa turned back to Christian. "I can be quiet," she insisted. "Besides—if Rose sleeps on the couch, she won't even be able to hear anything anyway."

* * *

The next morning after she'd dropped her keys and wallet in her assigned locker, Rose made her way out to the front counter and lifted her brows at the sight before her. "What's going on?" she asked.

Piper, the owner of Destination Fit, looked at her with a wide grin on her face. "We just made a mint off one of the local fire stations," she informed Rose.

"What does that mean?" Rose asked, taking a drink from her bottled water.

"It seems that Fire Station 252 isn't as fit as they should be," Piper said. "And guess who they've hired to get them into shape?" she asked excitedly.

"Ummm...us?" Rose guessed, anxious to get to work. She looked around the gym, wondering who her first client would be.

"Yes!" Piper said.

Rose nodded toward Courtney. "And what is she drooling over?"

Piper grinned. "The captain stopped by and dropped off a complimentary calendar of his men." She grinned widely. "_She _just discovered Mr. March."

"Oooh..." Rose said, playing along; she _did_ love a hot man. "Let's see him."

Courtney sighed as she hugged the calendar to her chest. "OK. But there's something you should know first."

"What's that?"

"I call dibs."

Courtney reluctantly pulled the calendar away from her chest and turned it around. Staring back at Rose, his tanned six pack glistening with a sheen of sweat, his brown eyes boring into her as if they could still see inside her soul, was the only man she'd ever made the mistake of thinking she loved. And then, after taking a moment to even out her breathing and push any lingering feelings that tried to surface way down deep inside, "He's all yours."


	2. Chapter 2

_a/n: Wow. Suffice it to say is that your response to last chapter absolutely blew me away! I hope you like this one as much. :) It should clear a few things up that some of you had questions about._

_Thank you to everyone who took the time to review the last chapter!_

* * *

Piper and Courtney had been oohing and aahing over the calendar all day, so it wasn't until the end of her shift that Rose finally got a chance to look at it again. By that time she was chomping at the bit. As much as she hated herself for it, she couldn't help but wonder what the hell had happened to pull Dimitri from the classroom. He'd loved teaching; she couldn't imagine him giving it up.

Hoisting her bag higher on her shoulder, Rose reached underneath the counter and opened the calendar. She kept it hidden as she didn't want her coworkers to think she was lusting after the half-naked men.

Her gaze zeroed in on the other two women, and when she was satisfied that they were too occupied to notice her, she quickly flipped through the pages until the sexiest part of her past was staring back at her. She cursed herself when she felt her heartbeat quicken; Dimitri was even more handsome than she remembered. His brown hair was a bit longer now—falling just past his shoulders—his abs were more sculpted, and the muscles in his arms seemed to bulge beneath his tanned skin.

She forced her eyes down the writing at the bottom of the page: _Dimitri, a full-time professor for NYU, spends his summers filling in at Fire Station 252. He's a self-professed fitness geek and likes to spend his spare time reading and hanging out with Hattie, his Golden Retriever. _Rose let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding at the news that he was still teaching. Though she wasn't sure why. The bastard could lost his job for all she cared.

* * *

"Did you know?" Rose asked quietly.

Lissa shook her head back and forth fervently. "I had no idea he was living in New York City," she assured her friend.

Christian sighed as he picked up the beer bottle next to his plate. "I thought I saw him once," he admitted. "But I wasn't certain it was him, and I didn't want to dredge up the past, Rose. That fucker wrecked you."

"He didn't _wreck_ me," Rose said with a bitter laugh.

"Rose," Lissa returned sternly as she fixed her gaze on her friend. "He _wrecked_ you. I know you tried to hide it, but he did. Are you...are you going to be able to handle this?"

"I'm a big girl," she told her friends.

"So...when is his first session?" Lissa wanted to know.

Rose shrugged. "I don't know. I didn't want to ask, because I didn't want to be tempted to call into work that day."

"Big girl, huh?" Lissa asked knowingly as she took a bite of her mashed potato.

Zander's cry saved Rose from having to defend herself. "Can I get him?" she asked as she stood.

"Of course," Lissa answered.

Rose made her way to the bassinet in the living room and grinned down at the baby. He was wailing as loud as his little lungs would allow, his little hands balled up into tight little fists. "Hey, buddy," she said soothingly as she lifted him into her arms. She breathed deeply, inhaling that baby smell she'd come to realize she adored. She stood there for a minute rubbing his back to try and comfort him, and it wasn't long before his cries stopped, followed by a heavy sigh. One look at him told her his eyes were closed again, and he was once again fast asleep.

Rose stood there for a moment and closed her eyes, taking just a moment to remember what it was like after Dimitri had told her he was leaving. She refused to let her heart feel; instead she thought of Lissa and Christian—what it must have been like for them to see her like that. She thought she'd handled it well, but while Lissa may have been one to occasionally give in to dramatics, Christian wasn't. She felt guilty for what she must have put them through. But never once had they complained, and while she and Lissa had discussed Dimitri a few times over the past few years, her friend had never pushed her for more information than she was willing to impart.

Zander's wiggling brought her back to the present, and instead of placing him back in his bassinet, she carried him into the kitchen with her and sat down at the kitchen table, then picked up her fork and took a bite of chicken.

"You're spoiling my kid," Christian accused.

"If I wasn't holding him, _you _would be," she shot back.

Christian just grinned back at her. "Oh, I meant to tell you. Adrian is flying in tomorrow."

"Yeah? Is Sid with him?" she asked.

Christian shook his head. "No. It's for business. The club he's running is fully staffed, but I can't seem to find a manager who wants to work. Lissa and I have a meeting with the investors tomorrow, so he's covering for me. He offered to stay until the end of the week so I could have a few days off."

Rose laughed. "That's Adrian. You know that's his way of showing you his club can run itself, right?"

"I don't care _what _it is," Christian stated. "I'm just glad I'm going to get some sleep."

* * *

"Rose!"

She heard Piper call her name and looked up. Her boss was holding the phone out to her, and Rose frowned. Who in the hell was calling her at work? No one called her at work. She instructed her client on what to do next, then headed for the counter.

"Hello?" she said into the receiver once Piper handed it to her.

"Rose, I am _so_ sorry to call you at work," Lissa said, her voice panicked.

"What is it? Is Zander OK?" Rose asked, her friend's panic throwing her into a tailspin of her own.

"Oh, he's fine," Lissa said. "But Adrian was going to take him to the bar while Chris and I meet with the investors-"

"He's bringing Zander to the _bar_?"

"It's not open yet, Rose," Lissa snapped. "He'll just be doing paperwork and taking inventory. But his flight is going to be late, so he's not going to be here in time, and I cannot miss this meeting, Rose. Can you watch Zander?"

"I can't ask to leave work, Liss. It's only my third day."

"Isn't' your lunch from noon to one?" Lissa asked.

"Yeah."

"I can drop Zander off at quarter past twelve, and I promise Adrian will be there by one," Lissa said pleadingly. "Rose—"

"OK, then," Rose interrupted her friend. "That should be fine."

"Really?" Lissa sighed. "Thank you so much!"

"No problem."

* * *

It was five minutes to one, and Rose was getting anxious. There was no sign of Adrian yet, and her clients would be arriving any moment. Four of them—in fact. Apparently it was some kind of group training.

Zander was fast asleep in his car seat, and Courtney and Piper were desperate for him to wake up so they could hold him. Apparently they liked to fawn over _every_thing.

When Adrian blew inside, the girls behind the counter exchanged a look, and Rose nearly rolled her eyes. He had that affect on most females.

"Hathaway," he said with a grin.

She couldn't help but smile back at him. "You were almost late," she scolded.

"But not quite," he said, grin widening. It was easy to see why women found him so sexy, but he'd never done anything for her. "He asleep?" Adrian asked as he nodded toward Zander's seat.

Rose nodded. "He has been since Liss dropped him off.

Adrian nodded. "You coming to bar tonight?"

"Yes," Rose answered. "But I have to work in the morning, so I can't stay too late."

"I've heard that before," Adrian teased.

"I'm serious this time." Rose laughed.

"OK," Adrian returned. "I'm gonna hug you now."

"Ad—"

"You know it's going to happen," he taunted. "Just shut up and take it."

Rose arched a brow at him. "You tried that line on prom night. It didn't work then, and it won't work—" She screeched as he hauled her into his arms and gave her a tight squeeze.

"I missed you, Rose," he said softly.

"I missed you, too," she admitted as she reluctantly returned his embrace.

When he pulled away, he kissed her on the forehead and then reached for the car seat. "Cute kid. Can you believe they trust me with him?" he asked with a smirk.

Rose didn't find it funny. "There's a bottle already made in his diaper bag," she said as she lifted it over his shoulder. "And plenty of diapers. Just text me if you have any questions."

Adrian's eyes danced. "I think I can handle it, Rose," he teased. "So...I'll see you tonight?"

"I'll see you tonight," she called, her eyes glued to the car seat until the door closed.

With a sigh, she lifted her gaze and happened to glance to the left...and froze as her gaze locked with Dimitri Belikov's.


	3. Chapter 3

_a/n: Thank you all so much for the reviews for last chapter! :) You guys are so much fun to write for!_

_Some of you seemed _very _concerned, so I just want to let you all know...Zander is going to survive his afternoon with Adrian. Adrian will be on his best behavior while the baby is in his care. ;)_

* * *

There hadn't been a single moment over the last five years when she'd strayed far from his thoughts; he'd often wondered about her—if she'd been able to move on.

He'd _wanted_ her to have moved on.

He'd wanted to think that his leaving hadn't caused any more emotional damage than she'd already experienced. That was, in fact, exactly what he'd been trying to avoid when he'd left. But as he watched her hug another man...as he watched her eyes holding fast to the baby boy until he was out of sight...Dimitri had felt his heart lurch inside of his chest.

There had been a time when _he'd _wanted to be the one who would give her those things—if she'd be willing to accept them. But he'd never quite been able to believe that she'd ever _want_ them. To see her with them now... Dimitri held his breath as he took the time to study her. She was thinner than she'd been when he'd known her. Not in an unhealthy way; she actually looked more fit. Her hair was pulled back into a pony tail, and he wondered if it was as long as it had been, if it would still feel like silk laced through his fingers. He was glad to see she hadn't altered the dark brown shade.

His gaze returned to her face and as the door closed, her head turned slightly until their eyes met. She stiffened immediately, and the smile on her face dissipated. He felt his fists clench at his sides as he waited for her to speak. His eyes fell to her mouth parted as her tongue darted out to lick her lower lip.

And then she turned on her heel and strode away.

* * *

When the men and women from Fire Station 252 had shown up for their first session, there had been twelve of them in total. Piper had divided them between Rose, Courtney, and Drew, another personal trainer who worked at the gym. Rose had ended up with one of the women and three men—none of whom were Dimitri. Apparently Courtney had met with Piper prior to their arrival and practically begged for an opportunity to train him. Rose was pretty sure Courtney would be happy for that training to extend beyond the gym, but Rose couldn't have cared less. As long as _she_ didn't have to train Dimitri, she was OK with that.

Who he took to bed was no longer a concern of hers. And she spent the better part of her two hours with her clients telling herself that, but there were a few times when she could feel his eyes on her even all the way across the gym, and Rose felt her resolve begin to slip. She wished she could jump on the treadmill and run it out. Running always helped to de-clutter her mind, and her head sure as hell needed to be cleared right now.

Though she thought she'd hate the variable schedule when she started her job, Rose was glad she wasn't leaving at five today. The last thing she needed was to go home to her empty apartment. No matter how tempting it was to spend her free time with Lissa and Christian, they had a new baby; they had enough to adjust to without her hanging around all the time.

At least working until eight, she could go home, take a shower, and then crawl into bed. Going to bed at nine wasn't _so _pathetic.

* * *

It wasn't until later that night when the hot spray was hitting her that Rose let her mind wander to Dimitri. She wondered what he thought after what he'd witnessed at the gym. To someone who didn't know any better, it probably appeared as though she'd been handing off her baby to his father. And if Dimitri thought that...well Rose could only wonder what he'd thought of the little scenario. Had he been surprised? A little jealous, maybe?

Rose laughed derisively. As if he was concerned about what was going on in _her _life. If there was one thing for certain, it was that _he'd _moved on. He probably really _was_ married with kids. Or at least one kid. She could just picture him in the backyard playing football with a little boy who had the same light brown hair he did.

Rose was shocked by how much the image tore at her and put her arms against the shower wall to steady herself. She took a deep breath and choked on a sob. For the first time in five years, she let the tears fall.

But at least she could pretend they were the hot water from her shower rolling down her cheeks.

* * *

_He couldn't remember having ever ached this much. Her lips grazed his jaw as she rocked back and forth over his lower body. He could feel a scorching trail as she moved. Her breasts crushed against his chest as she stretched to keep his arms pinned over his head. He knew he could easily break free, but why would he want to? Her hair tickled his sides while she pressed soft kisses to his chest; his body shuddered from the contact, but then she'd always done that to him._

_She let go of his wrists and trailed her fingertips down his arms until her palms were resting on his shoulders. She pushed herself up and looked down at him, a slow, wicked grin gracing her face. She leaned down, and just before her lips met his, she moved to the side and sucked gently at his neck._

"_Roza," he growled. _

_As she pulled away, she lifted her lower body away and pushed her hips back. She walked her hands down his chest until she was upright, then reached between them, positioning him just right as she began to slide down his length. He groaned as he felt her heat surround him; his hands shot out and grabbed her hips, lifting her. His hands gripped her tighter as he hauled her back down onto him._

Dimitri flew up in bed, his breath coming in gasps. He stifled a groan as he wiped a hand over his face; it had been years since he'd had such a vivid dream. With a sigh, he fell back against the pillows and turned to look at the woman sleeping next to him thankful she hadn't awoken when he'd been jerked from slumber.

After lying there for a few minutes, he turned to look at the clock. Three a.m. There was no way he was going to be able to fall asleep with the throbbing between his thighs. So he crawled silently from the bed and made his way to the bathroom for a cold shower.


	4. Chapter 4

_a/n: Thanks so much to everyone who took the time to read and review last chapter!_

_Also, I just want to let you know that the only way I can write this story is the way _I _see it. If you find that things are moving too slow, then this may not be the story for you. I can only write the story the way I picture it playing out, and I just don't see Rose falling straight into Dimitri's arms or bed without a fight. I think Rose is too stubborn for that, and I won't pull her out of character to suit my plot._

_They'll get their happily ever after in this story, but I'm not going to force it or rush it._

* * *

"By the way, you're invited to supper tonight."

Rose tucked her cell phone between her chin and shoulder as she fumbled around inside her bag for her wallet. She pulled it out, paid the three dollars for her coffee, smiled at the woman behind the counter and made her way back to the sidewalk. "Aren't I invited to supper _every_ night?" she asked amused.

"Yes," Lissa said firmly. "But I'm _begging_ you to be here tonight."

"Why is that?" Rose asked as she joined the sidewalk traffic and made her way to Destination: Fit.

Lissa sighed heavily,and Rose knew instantly what had caused her friend's reaction. "Tasha," they said at the same time.

"You know I only tolerate her because I love my husband," Lissa insisted. "But she called me this morning and asked if she could bring her _latest _to dinner tonight."

"Her latest what?" Rose asked with a laugh.

_"Victim."_

"Is that what we're calling them these days?"

"Well, isn't that what they are? She drains these poor men of their bank accounts and then moves on," Lissa stated disapprovingly. "It's disgusting."

"Liss, if they let her do that, it's their own fault."

Lissa took a deep breath. "I suppose you're right. But hey, at least Adrian will be here. That'll get you here, right?"

"That depends," Rose said. "What's for supper?"

"Christian is grilling," Lissa answered. "The steaks are already marinating."

Rose laughed. "All you had to do was tell me you're grilling."

* * *

Dimitri hated that he'd agreed to meet Tasha's brother tonight—almost as much as he hated the fact that he hadn't seen Rose at the gym during his early morning session.

But she'd caught him off guard. She'd shown up at his front door last night after having too much to drink and then passed out. In his bed. He'd tried to escape to the couch, but she'd grabbed his wrist and begged him to stay with her. Then when she'd woken up this morning, she sprung the question on him, and he'd have agreed to almost anything to get her out of there.

He'd only been on two dates with her, for God's sake. He hadn't even kissed her; he knew now that he never _would_. As soon as dinner was over tonight, he'd let her know that they wouldn't be seeing each other again, and then he'd be on his way. To where—he wasn't sure.

* * *

"Look at you being all paternal," Rose said as she closed the front door behind her and walked over to the couch. She flopped down next to Adrian and Zander.

"Hey, hot stuff," Adrian said with a grin.

"You and Sid gonna have one of these?" she asked as she reached for Zander's wrist, then leaned down and placed a soft kiss on his palm. "Hey, buddy."

Adrian's sharp laughter drew her gaze to his face. "Not anytime soon," he said fervently.

Rose looked around. "Where are Liss and Chrish?"

"Outside grilling."

Lissa's effort to serve dinner and then get rid of Tasha as fast as she could, Rose was sure. Her lips lifted in a grin. "Is that code for something?" she asked.

Adrian laughed again. "No," he assured her.

Rose's gaze returned to the baby. " He's content with you," she said.

"You sound surprised."

"Did you slip some beer in his bottle to mellow him out?" she teased.

He gave her a dirty look and then turned his gaze to Zander. "Your Aunt Rose thinks she's funny," he said dryly.

Rose rolled her eyes and reached for the baby. "It's my turn."

But Adrian held him away from her and grinned. "I'm not done with him yet."

"Adrian," Rose said warningly as she leaned over him, balancing one hand on his thigh as she reached for Zander. The knock on the door didn't halt her pursuit of the baby.

"Come in!" Adrian called.

* * *

He may have been unprepared for what he'd seen when he'd first spied her at the gym, but there were no words to describe how he felt this second. The smile on Rose's face as she leaned across the brown haired man on the couch was the widest smile he'd ever seen cross her features. "It's my turn!" she insisted, and if the scene had been with someone he wasn't certain he'd ever fallen out of love with, he'd have found it charming.

"Adrian!"

Dimitri's eyes went to the French doors and instantly recognized the woman who stepped inside.

"I don't like my kid suspended in the air like that," she chastised.

With a grin, he handed the baby to Rose. "Sorry, Liss."

As soon as Lissa said his name, Dimitri realized who the man on the couch was—and that the jealousy he'd felt once upon a time had been warranted.

And then it hit him. _My baby. _Lissa had said _my_ baby.

"Hello, Lissa," Tasha said, cutting into his thoughts. Her voice drew her sister-in-law's attention.

"Ta—" Lissa gasped as soon as her eyes landed on him, and Dimitri shifted uncomfortably.

Her reaction caused Adrian and Rose to look up, and Rose immediately stilled.

"How cute is my nephew?" Tasha asked, not noticing the tension in the room as she started toward Rose. Adrian's eyes narrowed as they moved between Lissa, Rose, and Dimitri.

"What's going on?" he asked hesitantly.

And that's when Rose snapped out of it. "Tasha brought her boyfriend to dinner so we could all meet him." She gave Tasha a chiding look. "You haven't introduced him." She sprung up off the couch and completely ignoring Tasha's outstretched arms handed the baby back to Adrian. Then she approached him, a smile pasted on her face. "I'm Rose Hathaway," she said as she held her hand out in front of her.

Dimitri had to bite back a growl when he realized it was the hand that had just been on Adrian's thigh; he had no choice but to reciprocate her gesture. "Dimitri Belikov," he returned as he reached his hand out slowly.

He resisted the urge to grab her wrist and haul her the hell out of there.

* * *

"It's nice to meet you," Rose said as his hand clasped hers. The zing of electricity that sailed up her arm and straight to her heart nearly brought her to her knees and she felt her breathing hitch.

His gaze locked on hers. "Likewise," he said softly.

A door slammed, breaking their reverie. Rose looked up as Christian walked inside. His mouth parted in surprise at the sight of Dimitri in his living room, and then his eyes narrowed as he scowled. "Does someone want to tell me what the _hell _is going on?" he demanded.


	5. Chapter 5

_a/n: Thank you all so much for your reviews for last chapter! :)_

_I'm sorry to do this here, but since the following review was left anonymously, I'm not able to respond through private messaging._

_**Anonymous: okay like wtf? we wait for your sorry ass to update and when you do its like 500 freaking words? so not cool bitch.**_

_**Dear Anonymous, **_

_**In the future, if you could refrain from mentioning my 'sorry ass' and referring to me as 'bitch,' I would appreciate it. I would never be so disrespectful towards you, and I expect the same courtesy in return. **_

_**I get that this story isn't going to work for everyone; I don't **_**expect****_ that every single person is going to like my story or how I choose to post it. If this does not work for you, feel free to move onto another story. But please, extend the author some courtesy._**

_**Angie**_

* * *

Rose watched as Lissa cleared her throat and walked over to her husband. "I think Zander could use a diaper change," she said as she began tugging on Christian's wrist.

"Ummm..." Adrian glanced over his shoulder as the couple exited the room. It was barely a second before Lissa bolted back in.

"Right," she said as she plucked Zander from Adrian's arms and once again left the room.

"What's going on?" Tasha asked as she looked from Rose to Adrian.

"I have no idea," Rose said, putting on her best poker face. "But I'll find out." She pulled her hand from Dimitri's without looking at him and walked away. She followed Christian's raised voice to his and Lissa's bedroom. The door was open, so she knocked on the door frame and walked in. "Everything OK?" she asked cautiously. It was obvious Christian was furious and his wife was trying to calm him down.

"No, it's not OK," he said heatedly. "I think we should ask Dimitri to leave, but Lissa thinks it's a bad idea."

"She's right."

"Rose-"

"Christian," she started softly. "It's been five years."

"And you're _still_ not over him," Christian pointed out.

"Yes, I _am_!" Rose insisted, knowing she was lying to her best friends and hating herself for it. "And even if I wasn't, dinner with him won't kill me. Tasha is your sister, and Dimitri is her..." Rose had to force herself to say the word. "Boyfriend. I don't expect you to choose sides."

"I know you don't _expect _it, Rose. That's the worst part," Christian snapped.

Rose sighed. "Christian—"

"What the hell is going on?" Adrian asked as he walked into the room.

Rose rolled her eyes. "Seriously?"

"Who isthat guy?" he pressed.

Christian quirked a brow and Adrian's jaw dropped as realization hit. He lifted his hand and pointed his thumb over his shoulder. "That's..." His voice trailed off and he looked at Rose. "I'll get rid of him," he said firmly.

Rose grabbed his arm before he could exit the room. "OK. First of all, no. You won't. Second of all, how do you even know who he is? I never said a _word_ to you about him."

Rose looked at Christian, and he quickly looked away. When she turned her head to Lissa, she wouldn't make eye contact with her, either. Rose shook her head. "Unbelievable. So...when we decided we weren't going to talk about what happened between Dimitri and I, apparently you guys decided you just weren't going to talk about it with _me?_"

When it was clear no one was going to speak, Rose continued. "Tasha is your sister, Christian. She's staying for dinner. And so is her boyfriend."

"If it's too much, Rose, say the word, and I'll get you the fuck out of here."

Rose nodded, surprised at the ferocity in Adrian's voice. "Thank you."

He returned her nod with one of his own, then turned to Christian with a wide grin on his face. "So that's the fucker whose nose you broke?

"What?" Rose screeched.

* * *

"So, Adrian, are you still with Sydney?" Tasha asked as she took a bite of pasta salad.

Adrian nodded, and Dimitri struggled to keep his expression neutral. That was a nice piece of information. Not only did they _not _have a baby together, but they weren't even an item.

"We just got engaged a few months ago," he said proudly.

"Oh, that's nice," she remarked.

Tasha hadn't noticed that she'd been carrying the conversation since they'd sat down to eat. No one spoke unless they were speaking to her or asking someone to pass something; she was completely oblivious to the tension in the room.

"Have you set a date yet?" she continued.

Adrian shook his head as he took a drink of beer. "Not yet. Gotta get the wedding party straightened out first. We want to make sure the date works for everyone since most people are going to have to fly in for it."

"Are you in the wedding, Lissa?" Tasha asked.

She nodded. "Rose, too."

Tasha's fork froze halfway to her mouth. "That's gotta be...awkward," she said.

Dimitri shifted uncomfortably in his chair.

"Why would that be awkward?" Adrian asked.

Tasha shrugged. "Given your history..."

Rose laughed. "We don't _have_ a history."

"Oh, come on," Tasha said. "I was only a few years ahead of you in high school, Rose. I'm not stupid. I don't think anyone at this table believes you and Adrian have never..."

Her voice trailed off suggestively, and Dimitri saw a flash of fire in Rose's eyes. "Never _what_, Tasha?" she asked with was forced patience.

"You gonna make me spell it out for you, Rose?"

Rose put her fork down and rested her arms on the table as she gazed expectantly at Tasha. "I think you're gonna _have_ to," she said.

"Slept together. It's obvious you two slept together."

Dimitri cleared his throat and started to stand, but when Rose turned her glare on him, he decided to remain seated. He was suddenly afraid of what she might to do Tasha—not that Tasha didn't deserve whatever it was that was going to happen.

"Not that it's any of your business, but Rose and I have never slept together," Adrian snapped.

"Oh, come _on_," Tasha said.

"Tasha," Christian said warningly.

Dimitri looked at Christian in surprise. It was clear that when it came to Rose and Tasha, his loyalty was not to his sister.

"I don't believe it."

Rose grinned slowly, her eyes darkening. "It's true," she confirmed.

"But it wasn't for lack of trying on my part," Adrian reminded her good-naturedly. His teasing tone with Rose was in direct contrast to the biting one he'd just used with Tasha.

Tasha laughed as she looked at Rose. "You actually said _no _to someone? I would have thought that with your reputation—"

"There's only one person at this table I've slept with, Tasha," Rose interrupted with a triumphant grin. "It _wasn't_ Adrian, and it _wasn't_ your brother." With those words, she sat back and watched as confusion set in for the other woman.

Her face flew to Lissa, but Lissa held her hands up. "It _wasn't_ me."

When she turned her gaze on him, Dimitri could feel his jaw begin to tick. If he'd been ashamed of sleeping with Rose, maybe his face would've turned red. But he wasn't. The only emotion rolling through him right now was anger at the way Tasha had spoken to Rose. He could hardly blame her for throwing the fact that she'd slept with him in Tasha's face.

He cleared his throat as he stood and turned to Tasha. "I think we should go."

Her gaze narrowed as she, too, stood. "I think that's a good idea," she agreed through gritted teeth, though why she was angry with him, Dimitri wasn't sure.

All he knew was that he had to get the hell out of there so he could tell her they wouldn't be seeing each other again.

* * *

"Well..." Lissa said as the sound of the door closing echoed through the room. "That was...interesting."

"Is your sister _always _like that?" Adrian asked.

Lissa nodded enthusiastically, and Adrian shook his head. "What a bitch."

"That's putting it nicely," Christian muttered.

Rose shrugged. "I thought it was kind of fun."

* * *

After helping Lissa clean up, Rose decided to call it an early night and head home. She stepped through the automatic door of Lissa and Christian's apartment building and onto the sidewalk. It was warm even for June, so Rose unzipped her hoodie, then put her hands in her pockets and headed down the sidewalk.

"Rose."

She hesitated for a moment before coming to a stop and turning around.

"Are you OK?" Dimitri asked, studying her face.

She returned his gaze for a moment before tilting her head to the side. "You know what, Dimitri? You weren't worried about the eighteen year old me. Don't concern yourself with the twenty-three year old me. I am just fine."

She turned away and started down the sidewalk again when he yelled after her. "I didn't sleep with her."

She spun around and glared at him.

"Tasha," he explained. "I didn't sleep with her. For the record."

Rose put her hands, still in her hoodie pocket, out to the sides. "'For the _record_?'" she spat. "What in the hell makes you think I care _who _you're banging?"

"Rose..." he said tiredly as he reached toward her. She took a quick step back, and he sighed.

"I just thought you should know," he said. "If I thought you'd slept with Adrian, I-"

"You know what? I wish I _had _slept with Adrian!" she shouted. "_Just _so I could see the look on your face right now." She laughed bitterly. "And for the _record_, you don't need to inform me what—or who—you're doing. _You _are none of my business. And I'm none of yours."


	6. Chapter 6

_a/n: Thank you guys all so much for the support with this story! I can't tell you enough how much I appreciate it._

_FYI—**I am not giving up this story. **It doesn't matter what anonymous writes; there are always going to be haters out there, and I just need to learn to tune them out. Does it screw with my ability to write when someone says something like that? Absolutely. Especially when they attack me personally as opposed to my story. I can't help that. But I won't let it stop me from writing as I love this fandom. The support you've shown is incredibly humbling, and it's those of you who've given me that show of support I'm writing this story for. _

_I'm sorry it took so long to get this chapter posted. If it takes this long again, please check my profile for an ETA on the next chapter, as I don't want to do an author's note chapter. It gets people's hopes up for a real chapter only to be let down._

_Enjoy! :)_

* * *

It had been two weeks since Rose had endured dinner with Tasha and Dimitri. Apparently things hadn't ended amicably with them, as Lissa had found out from Christian who had been informed by Tasha that Dimitri had told her they wouldn't be seeing each other again by the time the elevator hit the lobby. She'd demanded to know Rose and Dimitri's history, but Christian had refused to share even a hint of it with her. According to Lissa, he'd made it clear that Rose's history with Dimitri wasn't her business.

Rose did her best to push Dimitri from her mind. Thankfully he went on shift early in the a.m., so his workouts were scheduled at six in the morning with Courtney. Since Rose wasn't scheduled in until ten on most days, their paths never crossed. While not seeing him certainly made it easier, she wasn't able to completely keep from thinking about him. _I didn't sleep with her _were words that kept her awake at night. Why had he considered this information important enough to share with her? _He'd _been the one who'd broken up with her. It was unlikely he was carrying a torch after all these years.

"Can I tell you a secret?" Lissa asked, breaking into Rose's thoughts.

It was nearly nine o'clock at night, and Christian was at the bar. She and Lissa were lying in the bed with Zander between them. He was fast asleep on his belly, and Lissa was absently stroking his back.

Rose turned to look at her best friend.

"I always wanted you to marry Adrian," Lissa said softly.

Rose's eyes widened in surprise. "You did?"

"For incredibly selfish reasons," she admitted. "I know he'd give you whatever you wanted, and that you'd always want to be close to me."

"Liss, we'd have been toxic together_,_" Rose said.

"I know," Lissa agreed. "I _told _you I was being selfish."

Rose laughed. "No more selfish than I am. I have to admit, there have been times I've wondered if I missed the boat with Adrian. Even though we probably would have killed each other. But Syd's so good for him. I see the way he is with her. It never would have been like that with him and me."

"Rose..." Lissa started, then hesitated. Rose waited for her friend to go on. "How many times have you thought about Dimitri over the years?"

Rose shook her head. "Not doing this, Liss."

"Rose-"

"Lissa," Rose said brusquely. "I'm not doing this because I _can't!_"

Lissa's eyes widened as she studied her friend's face, then she nodded.

* * *

"Tony..." Rose said warningly.

"It's just one date, Hathaway," he insisted.

Rose arched a brow at him. "If you can still talk, maybe 6.0 isn't fast enough." She grinned as her gaze swept over the others in her group, except for Dimitri; she avoided direct eye contact with him. Courtney had called out today, and since Friday was the only day all the men trained together, Drew had taken two and given Rose two—one of whom was Dimitri. "What do you think, boys? Should we take it up to 9.0? Do you think that'll shut Tony up?"

"No!" came a chorus of voices.

"But isn't all for one and one for all or something like that?" Rose asked teasingly.

"We're firefighters, Rose," Benito said. "Not The Three Musketeers. He goes into a burning building, I'm his wing man. Trying to get a woman? Man's on his own. I'm not helping him with his game. It's up to a brother to get his own date."

"You're not even breathing hard!" Rose exclaimed.

Benito winked at her. "Been running on my own time."

"Good man, Benito."

Drew, who had taken in the entire conversation, stopped at Rose's side and draped an arm around her shoulders. "I don't agree, Benito," he said.

"Excuse me?" the other man asked.

Drew dropped his arm as he paced back and forth in front of the twelve treadmills that were all occupied by members of Fire Station 252. "I think it's a brother's job to help another brother out," he explained, then grinned widely. "And we're going to do that right now."

Rose bristled, her eyes narrowing as she studied his face. "Drew," she scolded, trying to make her voice sound threatening; she figured she fell short when his grin only widened.

"So we're gonna help him out." He made his way to Rose's side again and dropped his arm on her shoulders. "Rose is new to the city, single..." he tilted his head so his gaze met hers. "You _are _single, right, gorgeous?"

"Yes," Rose answered, surprised to find her voice was hoarse.

"Can't imagine why," he said before he turned his gaze back to the men. "So we're gonna get Rose her first NYC date," he decided aloud. "You haven't been on a date since you've it the big, bad city, have you?"

"No," she admitted through clenched teeth.

"Excellent!" Drew said excitedly. "Glad I could be here for this, babe."

Rose decided that this was not excellent at all and tried to step away, but Drew's embrace tightened. "Stop the treadmills," he ordered, and once the belts on all twelve machines came to a stop and everyone was standing on the sides, he continued. "On the count of three, you're gonna start your treadmills again. Whatever speed you want," he announced. "If those of you Rose are training reaches ten miles first, she doesn't go out with Tony. If _my _team hits ten miles first, Rose and Tony go out. _To_-night," he said.

Rose's jaw dropped. "Drew-"

"You on board, Tone?" Drew asked.

Tony grinned. "Absolutely," he said firmly.

Rose's eyes widened. "_I'm _not-"

"Excellent!" Drew interrupted. "Three...two...one!"

The treadmills started whirring at the same time, and Rose glared up at Drew. "What the _hell _was that?" she hissed.

"Just trying to get you some action, Hathaway," he teased.

"I can get _action _on my own," she informed him primly.

"I'm sure you can, sweetness," he agreed. "And I'd be at the front of that line. But this is for fun." He dropped his arm and walked away. "Come on, guys! This is for Tony!"

Rose huffed before she walked down to the other end of the treadmills. It was clear her team was doing their best to win, but it was Dimitri who was carrying them. His t-shirt, having remained dry even during the 6.0 forty-five minute run they'd just endured, was soaked with sweat and his legs were moving so fast they were almost blurry. His gaze never wavered; he stared straight ahead at whatever he'd deemed his focal point.

It pissed her off that her dating life was, once again, dependent upon Dimitri. But she had to admit, she was glad he was on her team. She had no idea what the hell Drew thought he was doing, and she'd give him hell for it when there wasn't an audience around, but for now, she wanted her team running like hell. "Come on, you guys," she urged. "We got this."

* * *

And they did. Twenty-two minutes later, her team had collectively hit ten miles, while Drew's had just barely made it to seven and a half. Of course, Dimitri had carried the team, hitting almost five miles by himself.

"Awww...next time, Tone," Drew said. "Valiant effort, guys."

Rose's gaze swept to Dimitri, and he was still bent over, hands on his knees, struggling for breath. He arched his brow at Drew's words, and Rose started to simmer. She was absolutely _not _leaving her dating life in his hands!

"I agree," Rose chimed in as she pulled her gaze from Dimitri. _"Valiant _effort. In fact, Tony...I'll see you tonight. Eight o'clock. Ozera's."

Tony's brows arched in surprise.

"In fact, lets make it a group date," Rose continued. "You're all invited."

"Now _that _is good sportsmanship," Drew commented teasingly.

Rose grinned. She couldn't have cared less about good sportsmanship. Dimitri had been fucking with her head, albeit unknowingly, for the last five years.

It was time to return the favor.


	7. Chapter 7

_a/n: Thank you all so much for your reviews for last chapter! :)_

* * *

Rose slammed her shot glass down on the table, sucked the hell out of the lemon in her left hand, and then shook her head.

"Woo hoo!" She looked over just in time to see Shelly throw her arms in the air. "Shot number six and still going strong!"

Rose thought she could handle her liquor, but the Barbie accompanying Drew put her to shame. After two beers and three tequila shots, Rose felt like she was at least two sheets to the wind. But the woman next to her—who had to be at least twenty pounds lighter—had had two rum and cokes that Rose knew of, and as she'd just announced, six tequila shots. It was amazing she was still standing, let alone grabbing Rose's hand and hauling her to the dance floor. "Come on, Cheryl!" Shelly yelled over her shoulder. Cheryl was Benito's wife, and you'd never know that she and Shelly had just met. They were acting like they'd been BFF's their whole lives, and they were bringing Rose along for the ride.

Rose wasn't usually a BFF kind of gal (if you didn't count Lissa,) but she found she was enjoying her time with the other women. Benito's wife wasn't drinking; apparently they were trying—morning and night—to get pregnant. Cheryl had made it a point to thank Rose as her husband's stamina had increased and she was sure it was due to the amazing job Rose was doing whipping him into shape. Rose had found herself blushing, something she didn't usually do, and muttering a 'you're welcome' to the other woman.

Once they made it on the dance floor, Shelly's arms were in the air again and she was shaking her ass back and forth to the beat. Cheryl started following suit, and Rose decided it couldn't hurt to join in. She never missed a chance to get in some extra cardio.

They were only out there for one song before it turned to a slow one, and when Rose turned to exit the dance floor, she ran smack into Tony. He grinned as his hands dropped to her waist. "Mind if I have a dance with my date?" he asked, and Rose could hardly blame him. They hadn't had a second alone all night. But once she'd realized what she'd done, using Tony to get to Dimitri, she'd felt instantly guilty. Tony was a genuinely nice guy, and Rose didn't want to lead him on.

"Uh...sure," she said as she lifted her hands and put them on his shoulders. Something in his expression changed, and Rose quickly leaned forward and placed her chin on his shoulder. His touch was light on her waist; she could barely feel it through the denim, and he swayed them side to side. When the song was done Rose pulled back, and Tony's grip on her tightened.

"You OK?" he asked.

Rose met his eyes and swallowed past the lump in her throat. "Tony...I don't want you to get the wrong idea," she said.

"There's someone else," Tony stated.

"I..." Rose sighed. "There _shouldn't _be. There hasn't been for a long time, it's just..."

"But he's been in your thoughts," Tony said, and the look in his eyes was so gentle and kind Rose suddenly wished she was attracted to him.

"Unfortunately...yeah," she admitted.

"You running from him?" Tony asked.

Rose shook her head. "Memories," she told him. "I'm running from the memories."

He studied her face for a moment and then tilted his head to the side. "I can be a really good friend, Rose, if that's what you need," he said softly. Rose felt her heart clench in her chest.

"Thanks, Tony."

* * *

Rose frowned as she looked at her reflection in the bathroom mirror; she looked exhausted. Her cheeks were sunken in and she had dark circles around her eyes. Which was no surprise, as she hadn't been sleeping at night. She sighed as she headed for the bathroom exit. Thank God Dimitri hadn't shown tonight. It had just been Tony, Drew, Benito, and a couple of the other men from the Fire Station who had disappeared the minute they'd found someone to dance with. And—Rose had noted when she'd seen Stan on the dance floor—make out with. She could hardly blame him there. There was something to be said about a good make out session.

She'd barely stepped out of the bathroom when a hand clasped her arm and gently pushed her against the wall.

"Roza."

Rose got a feeling of dejà vu as she looked up into Dimitri's face. Her gaze fell to the black t-shirt molded to his chest, then down over his abs to the black jeans he was wearing. _Fuck. _No one rocked black the way Dimitri rocked black.

She immediately arched a brow. "It's been five years, Dimitri. And you're still accosting me in hallways outside of bathrooms."

Instead of speaking, he loosened his grip on her arm and the palm of his hand moved over her bare flesh and across her shoulder until he was gently cupping her throat. His fingertips rested just over pulse, which sped up beneath his touch. She struggled for breath as his fingertips moved back and forth over her flesh.

His gaze never left hers, and Rose shoved her hands behind her to keep from fidgeting. She'd been with a lot of men over the last five years—none more than once; she was done with _that—_but never in all that time had she felt the level of intimacy brought on by Dimitri's stare.

"Don't go home with him, Rose," he finally said, breaking his silence.

Rose shook her head. "What? Should I go home with _you_?" she snapped.

"At least with me you know what you'll be getting."

"Off and then dumped?" she taunted.

His eyes narrowed as he leaned in closer. Unable to stop herself, Rose shrunk back against the wall. "What the fuck did I do to you, Roza?" he asked softly.

* * *

Dimitri watched as her eyes filled with fire—a fire he recognized. Fire he'd seen countless times when he'd been inside of her, the fire he'd seen when she'd thrown things at him from across a room. He hadn't seen that passion in so long his heart nearly stopped.

"You taught me an important lesson," she snapped as she straightened and then thrust his hand away. "There was a time when I thought maybe I could be fixed. That maybe _you _could fix me. That maybe I wasn't as fucked up as I thought I was. For an _entire_ semester...I thought that! I was _that_ stupid. But then you broke up with me after you told me you loved me, and I realized there _was_ no fixing me. I am who I am. _That's _what you did. So stop beating yourself up, Professor. Because in the long run, you did me a favor."

* * *

Christian's head jerked up as the door to his office slammed closed.

"Rose?" he asked.

She waved at him to let him know she was OK, then bent at the waist and put her hands on her knees. Christian jumped up from his chair and made his way to Rose's side when he heard her struggling for air. "Panic attack?" he asked softly.

She nodded jerkily and he took her elbow, then led her to the sofa where she sat down. "Breathe, Rose," he said as he sat down next to her.

She was gasping, but steadily taking in air, so he knew she'd be OK. He'd only ever seen Rose have two other panic attacks in her life; they'd both been brought on by the same thing. "Dimitri?" he asked.

She didn't say anything, just nodded.

"You OK?" he pressed.

She nodded again, then spoke. "Tell me about the time you broke his nose."

Christian laughed. "Rose—"

"I really want to hear about him in pain," she pressed.

"Fine," Christian said with a sigh. "It was the first night you came home after he broke up with you. The night you collapsed inside the front door—remember that night?" he asked.

It was obvious from her scowl that she did.

"When Lissa got home, I went to Dimitri's apartment. As soon as he opened the door, I drew my fist back and punched him as hard as I fucking could."

Rose nodded. "Good," she said dryly.

"And then when he straightened too quickly, I hit the bastard again."

"How many hits did _he_ get in?" Rose asked, and he noticed her breathing had evened out.

"None," Christian said in a clipped tone.

"Not a single hit?" she asked in surprise.

Christian shook his head. "He stood there, Rose, and I watched while he waited to take another hit. He didn't _want _to defend himself."

"What?" she asked in surprise.

Christian hesitated before he spoke again. "He looked...almost as broken as you did," he said quietly.

"I don't believe you," Rose said.

He shrugged. "I don't care if you believe me, Rose. I know what I saw. The motherfucker looked like he'd just had his heart ripped out."

"Christian—"

And then he spoke the words he'd been holding onto for the last five years. "It made me wonder why the hell he even broke up with you in the first place."


	8. Chapter 8

_a/n: Thank you all so much for the reviews for last chapter! :)_

* * *

"Is everything OK?" Lissa whispered as she pulled the front door open.

Christian arched his eyebrows at his wife as he walked through the door, Rose in his arms. "She passed out in the taxi," he answered.

Lissa nodded. "Other than that..."

Christian deposited Rose on the couch, covered her with the blanket that was on the back of it, and then he turned to his wife. "No. She is _not _OK. She had half a fucking bottle of tequila by herself," he muttered as he stalked to their bedroom; Lissa followed.

"What happened?"

Christian shrugged as he loosened the knot in his tie then pulled it over his head. "Dimitri fucking Belikov," he snapped.

Lissa jumped at his tone.

"I'm sorry, Lissa."

Lissa grinned. "Christian, one of the things I love most about you is how much you care about Rose. You never have to apologize for that."

"Then you wouldn't be upset if I told you I broke his nose again?" he asked dryly.

"What?" she shrieked.

"I'm kidding. But I did think about it." His eyes went to the bed, landed on his son and then flew to his wife.

"Seriously?" he asked.

"Christian-"

"I thought you were going to start putting him in his crib at night."

"Well, I was..." she replied sheepishly as she crossed her arms over her chest. "It's just...his nursery is so far away."

Christian leaned forward and lifted his son into his arms; Zander didn't stir. "I'm putting him in his crib," he informed her as he headed for their bedroom door. "And when I get back, you'd better be naked."

Lissa's jaw dropped. "Rose is here!" she hissed.

"Yeah, and we've done it with Rose in the house before," he reminded her.

"Yeah! When we were teenagers!"

"Rose is dead to the world. Trust me, no amount of screaming is going to wake her." He grinned at her over his shoulder. "And babe...there's going to be a _lot_ of screaming."

* * *

_Professor, _Dimitri thought as he crawled beneath the covers, then reached for the lamp on his bedside table to turn it off. She'd called him professor. For five years, he thought he'd never hear her say that to him again. When she had, his entire body—always in a heightened state when he was around her—had snapped to full attention. His dick jerked at the memory. The tone she'd used tonight wasn't the one he remembered—thick with want—but that hadn't mattered. He'd knocked her off her game tonight, and she'd accidentally used her old nickname for him. She never would have called him that if she'd been in control.

He turned to look at the clock on his nightstand. _Four a.m. _He'd stuck around long enough to make sure she'd get home OK. When he'd seen her stumble out of the club with Christian, he'd known she'd be fine. So he'd returned home and unable to sleep, he'd gone for a two a.m. run. As usual, the streets in New York weren't empty, and his mind had been so occupied that by the third time he'd almost collided with someone, he'd turned around and headed home.

Sleep, however, still eluded him, as Roza's passion filled eyes were never far from his thoughts.

* * *

"I smell coffee," Rose muttered as she walked into the kitchen the next morning.

Lissa pulled a second mug down from the cupboard and poured Rose some of the hot beverage, then placed it on the table.

"Thanks," Rose said as she unbuckled Zander and pulled him from his car seat. "Hey, buddy."

"Make sure he doesn't get drunk off your tequila fumes," Lissa said dryly.

Rose laughed.

"You feeling OK?" her friend asked softly as she sat down across from her.

Rose nodded. "Your husband plied me with water after I polished off a bottle of Pepé Lopez, so I don't have a headache. My stomach is a bit queasy, though."

"You sure that's the liquor?" Lissa pressed.

"No," Rose admitted, then took a deep breath. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you what?" Lissa asked as she took a sip of coffee.

"About Dimitri."

"What about him?"  
"Christian said he looked..." Her voice trailed off as she searched for the right word.

"Broken?" Lissa supplied. "We tried, Rose. Many times. You didn't want to hear it."

"That's not true!"

"It _is _true, Rose. God, do you realize that we have talked more about Dimitri in these last few weeks than we have in the past five years? I'm supposed to be your best friend, and you've never even talked to me about it," Lissa said angrily.

Rose flinched at her friend's tone.

"I walk on eggshells around you when it comes to him because I _know_ he broke your damn heart. But you refuse to admit it," she said shrilly.

"What the hell is with all the noise?" Christian muttered sleepily as he stumbled into the kitchen.

"You wanna talk noise?" Rose shot back. "Because I woke up at about four o'clock this morning to—"

"No need to clarify, Rose," Christian cut in, winking at his wife. "I know what you woke up to. I was there."

"I have to go." Rose suddenly flew up out of her chair and thrust Zander at Christian.

"Rose—"

She looked at Christian and spoke over Lissa. "Thanks for getting me home safe last night."

"Anytime," he said softly as he cuddled his son against his bare chest.

* * *

Rose walked into her apartment and tossed the keys on the stand beside the door before tearing off her hoodie and tossing it toward the couch. She stalked through her apartment, and once she reached her bedroom, she stripped down to her bra and underwear and climbed into bed, covering herself with a sheet.

Dimitri's question from the night before—or maybe earlier this morning, she was sure—fluttered through her mind: _What the fuck did I do to you, Roza?_

She'd known the question wasn't for her. He may have addressed her, but it was clear he was asking it of himself. The tortured look in his eyes, coupled with the information Christian had imparted before she'd drank herself into oblivion, haunted her. She'd only ever seen that look in his eyes once, and it was when he'd seen the bruises after she'd been attacked five years ago.

When it was clear she wasn't going to be able to sleep, she threw the sheet back and climbed back out of bed. If she was ever going to have peace of mind, she needed answers. So after scrubbing her face, putting her hair up in a pony tail and throwing on a pair of sweats and a t-shirt, she went to the only person who could give them to her.

* * *

He hadn't answered the door, and after sitting on the front steps of his brownstone for nearly an hour, Rose stood. Maybe this was a sign; maybe she wasn't _supposed_ to get answers. It wouldn't be the first time the universe had screwed her over, and it probably wouldn't be the last.

She put her hands in the pockets of her hoodie and was ready to take off down the street when she saw a figure—much taller than those around him—being led by a golden retriever down the sidewalk and straight towards her.

Apparently the universe had changed its mind. She sat back down on the steps and waited until Dimitri came to a stop before her.

"Roza," he said softly.

"Hey," Rose said, surprised by the hoarseness in her voice. She stood and cleared her throat before speaking again. "Can we talk?"


	9. Chapter 9

_a/n: Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to review! :) I hope you enjoy this chapter._

* * *

Dimitri forced back his surprise and studied her for a moment before nodding. "Of course." He gave Hattie's leash a slight pull. "Come on, girl," he said as he ascended the steps. He pulled his keys out and slid the right one into the lock.

"I was hoping we could talk out here," Rose said.

Dimitri turned to look at her. "Have you had breakfast yet?" he asked.

She shook her head. "I'm not hungry."

He grinned at her. "Well, I am."

"I won't take much of your time," she promised.

"You can have all the time you want," he said softly, troubled by what he saw. Her lack of makeup revealed the dark circles under her eyes. That, coupled with her paler than normal skin, weren't just from too much to drink last night. She was exhausted. He stepped through the entry and held the screen door open for her. "Rose?" he prompted when she didn't move.

She took a deep breath and walked up the steps, then followed him inside.

* * *

Rose was jarred from studying the masculine décor of his apartment by the sound of the door shutting behind her. She turned around as Dimitri reached behind his neck and tugged his sweatshirt off over his head; his t-shirt rose up over his stomach, giving her a glimpse of his perfectly sculpted abs.

He hung the sweatshirt up on the hook behind the door, then turned around. "Can I take yours?" he asked her as he held his hand out.

Rose took a step back. "I won't be here long," she insisted.

He shrugged and started walking away.

"Dimitri-"

"I liked it last night when you called me professor," he said without breaking stride. Rose had no choice but to follow.

"Are you sure you're not hungry?" he asked as she walked into the kitchen.

"I'm sure," Rose answered as she watched him pull a pan off a hook on the wall, spray it with some olive oil, and then put it on the stove.

"Suit yourself," he said as he ducked into the fridge and came out with a carton of eggs, pre-chopped onions and peppers.

"Look—"

"Did you go home with Tony last night?" he asked without looking up from cracking open an egg, then separating the white from the yolk.

Rose didn't bother to try and hide her surprise. "Not that it's any of your business, but no, I didn't go home with him."

Dimitri nodded. "Good to know."

Rose shoved her hands deeper into her hoodie pockets and stood there. "Are you going to cook, or are you going to talk to me?" she asked.

"I'm going to do both," he said as he poured the egg whites in the pan and stirred them around with a black, plastic spatula.

"Maybe this wasn't a good idea," Rose said. She wanted answers, but he seemed intent on ignoring her.

"You said you have questions, Rose," Dimitri reminded her. "I'm guessing I'm the only one who can answer them."

Rose took a deep breath, and then absently licked her lips. "Were you with me because of what happened with Mark?" she asked.

"Who?"

"Don't play stupid," Rose said angrily. "I know Christian told you everything about what happened to me the night I was attacked. Including who did it."

"Why would you think that was why I was with you?" he pressed.

"Because one minute you were telling me I was a mistake, and then the next minute you were in my apartment cooking me dinner and you wouldn't leave," she pointed out. "Until that happened, you were insistent we never see each other outside of the classroom again." She hated rehashing anything from their past; it was a testament to how much she remembered about her time with him. The last thing Rose wanted was for him to know how much time she'd spent thinking about him.

"Roza-"

"Rose," she persisted.

"I _knew_ I needed to stay away from you, Rose. I _tried_ to stay away from you," Dimitri reminded her. "And for a little while, it worked. Until I either ended up drunk or...until Mark happened. Those were just reasons to be with you again," he informed her.

"So it was about sex," she stated.

Dimitri laughed. "No. Except for the first time, Rose, it was never about sex."

"I don't believe you," she said.

He turned the burner off and dumped his scrambled egg whites with onions and green peppers onto a plate, then walked over to the table and sat down. "I don't blame you. I gave you every reason to doubt me."

When she didn't say anything, he looked up from his plate. "Rose?"

She took a deep breath and shook her head. "Christian said he broke your nose," she said so lowly he barely heard her.

"And gave me a black eye," he confirmed.

"You didn't fight back."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I deserved a broken nose. And the black eye."

Rose fisted her hands in frustration, her nails digging into her palms. It was like his words were bolts of lightning striking all around her, but his tone was so flat she wanted to scream. Instead, she laughed miserably. "This is just like when you told me you were leaving. You're just sitting there like it's a...typical Saturday morning. Like we're discussing the fucking weather. I don't...I don't even know why I came. I'm sorry I wasted your time. And mine."

She'd barely taken two steps when she heard the legs of his chair scrape across the floor, the sound of his footsteps as he advanced. He grabbed her arm and swung her around, then pushed her against the wall of the kitchen. She gasped when he stepped forward, his body pressing into hers. She had to tilt her head back to look at him.

"Is this the kind of reaction you want, Roza?" he asked.

All she could do was blink as she stared up at him. Her breaths started coming in little pants as he lifted his hand to her face, his fingers tangled in her hair while his thumb caressed her cheek. She bit her lip in an effort to hide her reaction from him.

"I thought you would forget me," he said.

Rose was surprised by the desperation in his voice.

"I thought you'd think about me for a few months, then move on. I was pushing you; I knew I was pushing you. Hell, I think I could have talked you into telling me you loved me before you were ready. You were young, Rose; for all I knew, I was an infatuation for you."

Rose had to choke back a sob at his words.

"I didn't realize that five years later, you'd still be thinking of me. Hell, I didn't realize that a _year_ later you'd be thinking about me. If I'd known, I swear to fucking God, Roza I would have found you!"

The sob she'd been so desperate to hold back finally escaped, and she used every ounce of strength she had to try and push him away; Dimitri, of course, didn't budge. "For what, Dimitri? I may have still been broken, but I wasn't desperate! A year later? God, I was probably in bed with someone else, because there have been a _lot _of someone elses since you," she announced.

"I don't care about that, Rose—"

She laughed miserably. "I didn't care about any of them, either. Hell, I didn't even know some of their names."

"Roza," he rasped as the hand on the back of her head tightened.

She tried to shake him off; he wouldn't let go.

His thumb resumed stroking her cheek, and his eyes darkened as they locked on hers.

"Please don't kiss me."

Her words were a desperate plea; she hated herself for the way they sounded.

With a resigned look, he dropped his hand and took a step back.

As soon as she gained physical space, she pushed away from the wall and fled.


	10. Chapter 10

_a/n: Thank you so much for the reviews for last chapter!_

* * *

_Hell, I didn't realize that a __year__ later you'd be thinking about me. If I'd known, I swear to fucking God, Roza I would have found you!_

Though two weeks had passed, Dimitri's words wouldn't leave her. Could it really have been that simple? Was he telling her the truth? Or was she so unimportant to him that he couldn't even stop from making himself breakfast to listen to her? As usual, his actions hadn't matched his words; it was no wonder Rose was a walking disaster when it came to Dimitri.

Though, when she'd tried to leave he hadn't responded well. And in the end, that was enough for her. The scraping of the chair…his pinning her against the wall with his body…his breath on her cheek…no matter what else was between them, his desire for her remained. And if there was one thing Rose knew about Dimitri, it was that he didn't 'do' physical desire without feelings. Many men did. She'd, in fact, been with a lot of them.

Somewhere inside Dimitri Belikov still felt something for her, which meant he'd felt something for her all those years ago. And it was that little bit of knowledge that Rose could live with. What she wouldn't have been able to live with was the thought that everything they'd had was a lie—that he'd never loved her as he'd claimed.

But he had. He'd proved that today.

And just when Rosemarie Hathaway thought she'd be able to get over Dimitri once and for all, all fucking hell broke loose.

* * *

_I didn't care about any of them, either. Hell, I didn't even know some of their names._

Dimitri's jaw clenched as her recalled her words. The thought of Roza in bed with another man was a bitter pill to swallow. But that fact that he—in an effort _not_ to hijack her future—had inadvertently caused her to close herself off so much was even tougher to take. Over the years, there had been times when the thought of her in another relationship nearly brought him to his knees. He'd take that over the cold reality of her bed-hopping any day. God, the thought of her having a string of meaningless trysts was enough to break him.

With a sigh he finished loading the dishwasher, and then walked into the living room of the firehouse where some of the other guys were playing cards.

"When are you seeing her again?" he heard Willis ask.

Tony shrugged, never taking his eyes of his cards. "Don't know."

"Third night this week, Tone," Willis pointed out with a knowing grin. "She put out yet?"

Dimitri chuckled to himself as he sat down on the couch. Willis was constantly on poor Tony about not getting any action. As usual, the young man's cheeks had turned pink with the ribbing.

"Naaaw," Tony insisted. "It's not like that with Rose."

Dimitri felt his blood pressure soar when he realized who Willis was referring to.

"How else could it be? Chick's hot," Belinski chimed in.

Tony shook his head. "She's hung up on someone from her past," he admitted with a growl. "And _whoever_ he was, the bastard fucked her over good," he insisted. "We're just friends."

Before Dimitri could let that sink in, the alarm went off and the men hauled ass. After making his way down the sliding pole and donning his gear, he jumped on the truck, holding on tight as they sped off with siren's blaring.

* * *

"Go away," Rose said half-heartedly to whomever the hell was pounding on her door at—she lifted her head to look at the clock. "Five o'clock in the _fucking _morning. What the _fuck_?" Rose asked angrily as she threw the covers back and climbed out of bed.

It had to be said that Rose didn't like waking up early _any _day of the week; weekends were grounds for homicide. She stumbled through her apartment still half asleep as the hammering continued. "Keep your pants on," she muttered as she pulled the door open.

She froze when she saw Dimitri standing on the other side looking, as usual, sexy as hell. He was wearing a pair of dark blue jeans and a blinding white t-shirt. His hair was a wreck and he had black, sooty smudges all over his face. Her face scrunched as the smell of smoke assaulted her.

"Dimitri?" she asked drowsily.

"How much did I fuck you up?" he barked.

"What?" she asked in confusion as she tried to rub the sleep from her eyes.

"Tony says someone from your past fucked you up. Was it me?" he demanded.

He waited a few moments, and when she didn't speak, he slammed his hand against the doorjamb causing her to flinch. "Dammit, Rose! How bad?"

"I don't sleep with the same man more than once," she snapped before she could stop herself.

His gaze narrowed, and she watched as his jaw began to tick.

"Dimitri—"

"Why not?" he pressed.

Rose wasn't sure if it was because she was still half asleep, or if she was just over playing fucking games with him, but she told him the truth. "Because I don't want to care, Dimitri," she told him. "When I go home with a guy, there's only one thing I want. And it's not to fall—" she broke off, mortified by what she'd almost said. She hesitated before speaking again. "It's not to fall down the wrong path with him," she finished.

"What path would that be, Rose?" he asked.

"Any path that involves anything more than a good lay." She took a deep breath, and then let it out slowly. "Dimitri, I was fucked up _before_ you. You just…sped things along, that's all. If it hadn't been you, it would have been someone else."

* * *

And there she was, standing there before him in her skimpy shorts and too tight tank top, hair in disarray, voice thick with sleep…absolving him of any guilt. It only made him feel guiltier.

"Fuck," he bit out, then slammed his palm against her doorframe again. "_Fuck!_"

Rose took a step back and crossed her arms over her chest as she studied him. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose as remorse surged through him. It was a moment before he let his hand fall and opened his eyes again.

"Tony would be good to you, Rose," he said in a low voice, surprised at how hard it was to get the words out.

She shook her head. "I don't need someone to be good to me."

Dimitri sighed. "Rose—"

"It's not that way with Tony," she persisted.

Dimitri tilted his head to the side and arched a brow.

"I'm not leading him on," Rose informed him. "He knows we're just friends."

He tried to tear his gaze away from hers, but he couldn't do it. "If you believe that, then you underestimate how easy you are to fall in love with, Roza," he whispered before spinning on his heel and striding away.


	11. Chapter 11

_a/n: Thank you all so much for the reviews for last chapter!_

_Also, for a peek at the dress is Rose is wearing at the end of the chapter, see the new avatar for the story._

* * *

"He said that to you?" Lissa asked eyes wide.

Rose nodded as she took a sip of coffee. "Yep." She could almost hear the wheels turning in her friend's head, but instead of speaking, Lissa looked down into her steaming mug of coffee. "I _know_ you want to say something."

Lissa looked up, hesitating before she spoke. "I want to say a lot of things, Rose," she said softly. "But you've just started _really_ started opening up to me about what happened with Dimitri, and…I don't want that to stop."

Rose swallowed past the lump of regret in her throat and forced herself to meet her friend's gaze. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

"For what?" Lissa asked in confusion.

"For making you think you can't ask me questions!" Rose answered in exasperation. "You have to know, Liss that the reason I don't open up has nothing to do with you. It's _me. _It's _all_ about me. It's because of _my _issues. It has nothing to do with you."

"OK," Lissa answered doubtfully.

Rose sighed, knowing her friend didn't believe her. Though it hurt, she knew it was something she'd brought on by herself, so she deserved this. "So tell me what you're thinking. I want to know."

Lissa took a deep breath. "Christian never thought Dimitri broke up with you because he didn't love you."

"What about you?"

She shrugged. "I never gave much thought to the 'why' of the situation. I just knew he'd hurt my best friend, and I was pissed at him."

Rose laughed nervously. "Yeah, well…that makes two of us."

"Well, I'm thinking about it _now_," Lissa said passionately. "And I want to know why the hell he broke up with you!"

Rose threw her free hand in the air. "Welcome to my world!"

"No wonder you're so fucked up," Lissa continued.

"Gee, thanks," Rose commented dryly.

"No—I don't mean in general," Lissa clarified. "I mean about _him_. My stomach is in knots because I want to know so badly. I can't imagine what it's like for you."

"It's been hell," Rose admitted. "But you know what? I decided that…I can't do this anymore. I have allowed what happened with Dimitri to rule my thoughts and my life for _five years, _Liss. It's time to move on. I _have _to let it go. It's made me bitter. It's made me…like my _mother_." The words were so nauseating Rose nearly choked on them.

"You are _not _like Janine," Lissa said angrily. "You are _nothing _like Janine, and if you ever say that again, I swear to God, Rose—"

"Geez, OK," Rose said, straightening in surprise. "I didn't realize that would upset you."

"Or course it upset me!" Lissa snapped. "Your mother is a cold hearted _bitch_ who doesn't care about anyone but herself. You are _not_ like and you never have been."

There was total silence for a moment as they avoided each other's gazes, and then Lissa finally spoke.

"Oh, God. I've probably just scared from ever even talking to me again."

Rose smiled at her friend. "No," she said reassuringly. "In fact, I think you've just done quite the opposite."

* * *

"It's not just for the firemen," Tony explained two weeks later, his hand at the small of Rose's bare back as they walked into the ballroom of the Broadway Marriot Marquis. "It's a way for the community to show their support."

"Oh, that's nice," Rose said sincerely as she preceded him into the room. When Tony had invited her to the Annual Firemen's Ball last week, she'd had no idea how grand the event would be; she nearly stumbled in her black pumps as she took in the sight before her.

Spread across a third of the room were enormous, round tables ensconced in gold colored tablecloths that fell until they skimmed the carpet. Ten chairs surrounded each one, covered with the same luxurious material. The center pieces were clear crystal bowls with dark, blue balls in each one. They reminded Rose of Christmas, and she couldn't help but notice they were the exact same shade as her dress. Surrounding each of the bowls were large candles in the same blue, lit to give the room a cozy glow beneath the dim lighting of the crystal chandeliers.

The rest of the room included a small area for the band, a spacious dance floor, and tables for the silent auction that would benefit a family of seven who'd recently lost everything they owned in a fire. Rose's heart broke at the thought.

"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you," Tony said as he began to lead her across the ballroom. "I met someone."

Rose's head jerked toward him. "You met someone?" she repeated.

He pursed his lips as he grinned, as Rose slapped him playfully on the arm with the clutch that matched her dress. "Then why am _I _here instead of her?" she demanded.

Tony chuckled. "Don't worry. She knows about you," he assured her with a wide grin. "It's Courtney."

"Courtney?" Rose asked with a frown, then a grin as it sunk in. "My coworker Courtney?" she asked.

She had her answer when Tony's grin widened.

"If I had known you were interested, I would have set you up," Rose said. Not that she was one to play matchmaker, but it had to be said that she adored Tony and the thought of him finding someone was enough to make her happy.

He shrugged. "I didn't know I was interested," he admitted. "But when I showed up at the gym the other day to work out, she was behind the counter, and we started talking and, well…one thing led to another and we're dating. Oh, here's our table," he said as he pulled her chair out of her.

Rose sat down in her chair and let Tony push it in, taking care to smooth her dress over her legs. She placed her clutch on the table beside her plate, and then lifted her head. She had to force her grin not to falter when she met Dimitri's gaze.

* * *

_They were late. _Dimitri knew Roza would be in attendance tonight, as the guys had been razzing Tony about it all week. His leg shook back and forth beneath the table as his date went on about something. He had no idea what it was; he'd stopped listening. He was too busy scouring the entrance for Roza's arrival.

And when he finally saw her, he had a pretty good idea of what had kept them. Tony had probably taken on look at her and hauled her against him; the thought was like acid. Dimitri's gaze raked her over from top to toe, which was a huge mistake if the twitching between his legs was any indication. The royal blue dress was stunning on her. There was a jewel encrusted strap that covered a single shoulder, leaving the other bare. The jewels traveled down the strap and across the top of the dress, disappearing into the fabric behind. The fabric looked as though it was shirred all over and clung to her like a second skin. Her hair, pulled off to one side tumbled down over her shoulder until it almost reached her waist.

He took in a deep breath as they approached, thankful she hadn't noticed him yet as it gave him an opportunity to study her.

It also allowed him to come to the conclusion that he had no idea how he was going to make it through the evening.

* * *

Rose stood beside Tony as he conversed with some men she'd only met that night; they were from another firehouse in the city who were sharing the event.

She took the last sip of her drink and turned to Tony, giving his sleeve a tug. "I'll be back," she said softly. "I'm just going to go grab another drink."

He smiled as he nodded at her, and then returned his attention to the men as she disappeared. She'd reached the bar but hadn't been waited on yet when he walked up. She knew it was him because the hair on the back of her neck was standing up.

"Dance with me, Roza," Dimitri said softly.

She turned slowly to face him, shaking her head back and forth. "Dimitri—"

"I've watched you dance with four other men tonight," he remarked, his eyes darkening. "Surely you can spare a dance for me."

_He's been keeping track of how men I've been dancing with._

She knew she should decline the invitation…or command…or whatever it had been, but the fact of the matter was that Rose had never been good at listening to her instincts when it came to Dimitri Belikov. So instead of turning back to the bar and simply ordering her drink as she should have, she held out her hand and let him lead her to the dance floor.


	12. Chapter 12

_a/n: Thank you for the reviews for last chapter! :)_

_Sorry this is a day late, guys. I wanted to get it posted yesterday, but I wasn't able to. I hope you enjoy it!_

* * *

"You look stunning, Rose," Dimitri said once they reached the dance floor. He pressed his hand into her lower back to pull her closer. She reached hesitantly for his shoulder and felt his muscles bunch beneath her hand. Though it had been years her body was conditioned to wrap itself around his, and she had to struggle to not to sink into him. It seems her mind and body weren't as in sync as she'd like them to be.

"Thank you," she said simply. "So do you." And it was true; even wearing the dress blues all the other men had on, he stood out. And not just because of his height. He'd always had an irrefutable presence about him.

They danced in silence for a few moments, swaying from side to side to the slow beat of the music; it was Dimitri who finally broke the silence. "I've changed my mind," he announced.

She gave him a quizzical look, urging him to enlighten her.

"Tony wouldn't be good for you."

She didn't say anything, just kept her gaze steadily on his.

"Well, he would. But you wouldn't be good for him."

She still didn't speak, just arched her brows.

"You would chew him up and spit him out, Roza," Dimitri went on. "And he'd let you. You'd be miserable."

"I don't know why I feel the need to say this again since it is so _clearly_ none of your business, but Tony and I are just friends," Rose reminded him. "But it's nice to know that you think that I'd be so callous about his feelings."

"He's into you—"

"No, he's not," Rose insisted. "He's dating Courtney."

Dimitri's brows furrowed in confusion. "From the gym?"

Rose nodded.

"Then why didn't he bring her?"

"Because they just started dating, and this event is a big deal to him. He didn't want her to feel like he was rushing things."

Dimitri's step faltered as his eyes roamed her face. "Something's changed," he said. "Why are you suddenly so willing to answer my questions?"

She shrugged. "I figured one of us might as well be honest, and it's obviously not going to be you."

"I've always been honest with you," he countered.

"Yes, you have. About the things you want to be honest about. You just avoid the rest."

He sighed. "What am I avoiding, Roza? What do you want to know?"

* * *

She was right. There were things he didn't want to discuss with her, things he was still angry with himself about. He'd given her up, dammit. She was supposed to have moved on to someone better for her, someone who wouldn't have pushed her the way he had. Someone who could settle for casual. She wasn't supposed to be bitter. She wasn't supposed to be fucking _broken_.

"Nothing."

"Roza—"

"I said nothing," she hissed, and he stifled a relieved sigh. _Finally_. A show of emotion.

"Five years, Dimitri. For _five_ years I have obsessed over what I did wrong. Over why you broke up with me. But you know what? I don't care anymore. I. _Don't. _Care." Her grip on his shoulder tightened with each word she spoke and Dimitri could feel her fingertips digging into his flesh.

"You care," he said softly.

"No, I—what are you doing?" she asked breathlessly as her head whipped from side to side. "How did we get here?"

He pushed her into the little alcove just off the dance floor, his hands dropping to the bare flesh just below the hem of her skirt; he felt her tremble beneath his touch. "You care," he repeated.

"No, I—"

"And you _want _answers, Roza. Well, here they are," he said as he locked his gaze on hers. "Simple answer? I was a fucking fool. I pushed you away because knew I was rushing you. I knew you weren't ready to give me what I wanted."

"How in the _hell _did you know that if you never asked?" she shot back.

"Because I know you," he reminded her. "As much of you as you let a person know," he amended as his hands stroked up underneath her skirt and back again. She shivered as she pressed into the wall behind her. He watched as she swallowed past the lump in her throat.

"You're wrong," she whispered. "About everything." She laughed miserably. "Well...except about the part where you were a fucking fool. _That's_ accurate." She took a deep breath before continuing. "You didn't rush me. You _never _rushed me, and that's one of the things…that's one of the things that I loved about you."

Dimitri felt his heart clench just hearing her say the word.

"And you never let me push you away. I tried, but you wouldn't. Even when everything happened with Mark, and you and I were already broken up, you…you showed up and you wouldn't leave. I was stupid enough to believe you never would! "

"Roza," he said softly, his heartbeat accelerating at her confession.

"But that was my mistake," she said in a clipped tone. "I was young…and naïve and…and stupid enough to fall for the words it was so easy for you to say. You know, aside from Liss and Christian, you were the first person I actually thought meant them? You already had me in your bed; you weren't trying to gain anything. You really had me convinced you loved me."

"Dammit, Roza. I _did _love you."

She shook her head. "You didn't."

"Yes. I did," he said resolutely. "And it was _because_ I loved you—"

"That you were going to break up with me by text?" she taunted.

"That was a mistake—"

"Yeah, and so was I. Remember?"

He'd forgotten the way she could take him from calm to blood boiling in mere seconds. "I remember being a dick, yes. But you know what else I remember, Roza?" His voice dropped to a hoarse whisper as he squeezed her thigh with one hand while the other lifted to her mouth to trace a line over her bottom lip. "I remember the way you feel when I slide inside of you."

Her eyes darkened at the memory, and he kept going. "I remember the way you taste," he said raggedly. "Here…" he drew a line over her bottom lip again before the tip of his finger travelled down, between her breasts until he was hovering just over the fabric between her thighs. "And _here_."

Her breath hitched as he leaned forward. "But what I remember most is the way your eyes soften when you're beneath me. In a way they never do outside of the bedroom."

* * *

Rose gasped the second their lips met, and Dimitri thrust his tongue inside. Every memory of every time he'd kissed her came rushing forth at his familiar taste, and she was unable to stop herself from wrapping her arms around his shoulders, clinging to him. One hand tangled in her hair as the other reached behind and jerked her body roughly against his. Her soft curves met his hard flesh, and she melted against him.

Her thighs parted instantly as he slipped his leg between hers. His fingertips tickled as they skimmed the bare skin over her spine, down and up again, as his tongue plundered hers. She clawed at the fabric of his shirt until it came loose from his pants, then slid her hands beneath, running them back and forth over the hot, hard flesh.

Rose suddenly remembered where they were when she felt her skirt rising, his erection pressing into her belly, and she dropped her hands from Dimitri's chest. She gripped his as she pulled away, shaking her head back and forth. "No." She could barely speak, but his hands let her go immediately and he took a step back.

Their eyes met as they both fought for air, and Rose sunk back against the wall. She flatted her palms against the hard surface in an effort not to reach for him again. What in the _hell_ had she been thinking?

"You still want me," he said triumphantly.

"I want you in my _bed_," she corrected, needing him to be pissed off again. That was a Dimitri she could resist. "Huge difference. Sex with you was always amazing, Dimitri."

He didn't say anything, but she could see his eyes darken with the anger she'd been searching for and couldn't stop herself from adding fuel to the fire.

"How about it, Dimitri? Do you want to be another notch on my bedpost?" she goaded.

Eyes blazing, he stepped forward and Rose jumped at the loud crack as his palm hit the wall just beside her head. "I want to be the _last _fucking notch on your bedpost."


	13. Chapter 13

_a/n: My apologies for the delay in getting this chapter up. I've had a busy few weekends with graduation parties and weddings, but we are back on schedule now. :)_

_Thank you all so much for the reviews for last chapter! I hope you enjoy this one!_

* * *

Rose didn't say anything, just stood there unblinking as she stared up at Dimitri. The only time she'd ever seen him this possessive was when she'd been at the bar years ago with Adrian. Dimitri had insisted they never see each other again, but the minute he'd seen her with another man, he'd changed his mind. It seemed history was repeating itself.

"Are you sleeping with him?" Dimitri asked.

Rose frowned in confusion. "With who?" she asked.

"Tony," he snapped.

Rose rolled her eyes and put her hand on his chest, trying to push him away. His strength won, and as usual, she couldn't even nudge him. "I'd ask if English is your second language, but I already know it is," she retorted. "I have told you—Tony and I are just friends. He's dating Courtney, and as much fun as it is to go around in circles with you, would you please move?"

"No," he barked.

Rose rolled her yes. "Dimitri—"

"I like it when you call me professor," he whispered huskily, and Rose felt a trickle between her thighs.

"I like it when you move," she shot back.

He arched a brow. "Inside you?"

_Yes. _Her sharp intake of breath caused his eyes to darken, and he smirked. Rose grappled for control of the situation.

"You've already said you're not interested in a quick fuck, and I'm not interested in anything else," she reminded him.

His jaw flexed and she saw an array of emotions play across his face before he calmed, leaning forward and running the tip of his nose down her cheek. When she turned away, his lips found her neck and he sucked softly. "I can count on one hand the number of women I've been with since you, Roza," he whispered.

"It's none of my business," she said breathily.

"It didn't matter who she was, it was always you beneath me."

Her jaw dropped and she put her hands on his chest, pushing with all her might. He took half a step back and met her gaze. "That's disgusting," she snapped.

"I know that, Roza," he taunted. "But I was powerless to stop it. It was always _you _writhing beneath me, crying out my name, coming—"

"Stop!" She'd known he'd been with other women—had even thought he'd been with Tasha until he'd informed her otherwise—and it had never bothered her before. They'd been separate for five years, for crying out loud, and Dimitri wasn't a monk. "I don't care who you were with! I don't care—"

She cut herself off, struggling for air as she felt the walls begin to close in on her.

* * *

Dimitri's gaze sharpened when her eyes filled abruptly with fear, and he tugged her against him. "Geez, Roza. Breathe," he coached softly in her ear, running his hands gently up and down her back.

He could hear her still gasping and tightened his hold on her. "Breathe," he commanded harshly this time, then forced his voice to soften. "Inhale, exhale. Come on, Roza."

It was a few minutes before he felt her body sag against his, her breaths finally even out. He pulled back and looked down into her eyes, lifting his hands to push her hair away from her face. "Better?" he asked quietly.

She swallowed nervously, her gaze darting away from his. "Yes," she whispered.

"You can't stand the thought of me with someone else," he stated.

She didn't say anything, and she still wouldn't look at him. "Roza…"

"Just let me go," she said.

He shook his head. "Never."

Her head snapped around so their eyes finally met. She laughed miserably. "Never?" she asked caustically. "You've already done it once. Once I stop running, Dimitri, and you have me, the thrill of the chase will be gone, and it will be sayonara Rose."

"Do you really believe that?" he asked gruffly. "Do you really think—" His beeper cut him off and he cursed as he reached for it. He looked at the screen and sighed. "I have to go," he said as he straightened, and from the commotion that had suddenly broken out among the other guests, she realized most of the men in blue were heading for the exit. "We are not done, Roza."

She smiled sadly at him. "We _are _done, Dimitri," she informed him. "We are _so_ done."

He glared at her for a moment before speaking. "I'm coming over the second I leave the station, Roza."

She shook her head. "Don't."

"I _am_," he vowed, and with those final words he turned and dashed for the exit.

* * *

Dimitri never showed, and much to Rose's mortification, she felt a mixture of relief and disappointment. She was pissed at herself for even expecting him to show, and a five mile run through her neighborhood and cleaning her apartment from ceiling to floor did nothing to take the edge off her annoyance.

Sunday night, she barely slept a wink, and was glad when Monday morning finally rolled around and she had work to keep herself busy. She headed for the staff office, locked up her bag, and then punched in and headed for the floor.

She did her rounds helping members with their forms and lifting techniques, and then followed it up with her busy work-cleaning the equipment and washing the inside front windows. She'd put away the spray bottle and roll of paper towels, then glanced up as Courtney approached. "Where are the guys?" she asked, trying to appear indifferent.

"Oh…" Courtney said, her eyes widening. "You haven't heard."

Rose straightened as her entire body went on alert. "Heard what?" she asked.

"I…" Courtney sighed. "Tony called me last night. They…a few of the guys were hospitalized when the structure they were in collapsed, and they…they lost one of their men."

"_What_?" Rose shrieked. "Who…who…?" She forced herself to take a deep breath. "Who did they lose?"

Courtney smiled sadly. "Benito."

"Oh, God," Rose said as she buried her face in her hands as a picture of Cheryl—Benito's wife—flashed through her mind. "What about…is…is Dimitri OK?" she choked out.

"Dimitri?" Courtney repeated.

"Belikov!" Rose snapped.

"Last I heard he hadn't come to yet," Courtney said quickly. "He was—"

"Which hospital?" Rose demanded.

Courtney rattled off the name, and Rose fled.

* * *

A quick call from the taxi and Rose knew which room Dimitri was in. She hadn't worked out in her mind yet what explanation she would give him for being there—if he was awake—and refused to admit to herself why she was so freaked out. She thrust the money at the taxi driver and was out of the cab sprinting for the hospital entrance before it even came to a complete stop.

She passed the elevators and ran up five flights of stairs, not stopping until she reached Dimitri's room. A quick look around let her know she'd escaped notice of hospital staff, and she walked into his room, stopping once she reached his bedside.

Her breathing was heavy from the exertion of running up the stairs, but she hardly noticed. Dimitri looked so peaceful lying there; there were no wires or tubes except for one IV in his arm, and Rose couldn't decide if that was a good thing or a bad thing. She reached for his cheek and brushed a lock of hair back; he didn't stir.

She studied the face she'd once loved (yes, _once_ loved as there was no way she could love him again,) and smiled softly at how boyish his features looked.

"Hello."

Rose jumped back and lifted her eyes. "H…hi," she returned to the woman standing in the doorway holding a Styrofoam cup in her hand.

"Can I help you?" the woman asked as she approached.

Finally recognizing the woman she'd met only once before, Rose stiffened. "I'm a…friend of your sons."

The woman's gaze narrowed. "You look familiar."

Rose cleared her throat. "We've met," she said quickly. "Once. It was…years ago. I'm so sorry to disturb you; I just wanted to…I'm sorry to disturb you." She walked around the bed and tried to rush past Dimitri's mother, but the woman was quick. She gently grasped Rose's arm and turned her around.

"Ahh…yes. Now I remember," she said softly. "The one that got away."

"Excuse me?" Rose said in surprise.

The woman smiled sadly. "You're the one that got away," she repeated. "The only woman my son has ever loved."


	14. Chapter 14

_a/n: Hey, guys! I haven't had a chance to respond to reviews yet. I will be doing that as soon as possible, but I wanted to at least get the next chapter up for you!_

_As always, thank you so much for reading and enjoy! :)_

* * *

Rose laughed nervously. "You must have me confused with someone else," she said, shaking her head. "It's… " She swallowed past the lump in her throat and turned her gaze on Dimitri's unmoving form. "Your son never loved me," she whispered, willing her distress over seeing him so still to go away.

"On the contrary, Ms. Hathaway, my son loves you very much."

Rose's head snapped back to the other woman and her brows drew together as she looked her up and down; the present tense in her declaration didn't escape Rose. "How do you know my name?"

"I was introduced to you," she said simply.

"Five years ago. You remember my name from _once_ five years ago?" Rose pressed.

The woman smiled sadly. "No. I remember your name from last week. You stopped by to visit my son. Things didn't go so well."

Rose took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Belikov, but—"

"Olena," she interrupted.

Rose went on as if she hadn't spoken. "I don't think this is a conversation we should be having."

The woman gave her a stern look. "You're not big on communication," she said chastising.

_Your son has a big mouth. _"I don't…know what Dimitri has told you about me—"

"Nothing. He hasn't told me anything."

"Then how do you know…?"

"His sister," Olena explained with a touch of sadness in her eyes. "He…won't talk to me about you. I think he still blames me for…oh, well." She pasted a smile on her face that Rose instantly recognized as fake. "It's in the past."

_It's my freaking present! _"For what?" Rose asked, trying not to hide the urgency in her tone. She cursed herself for being so damn curious.

Olena took a deep breath as she made her way to Dimitri's side, forcing Rose to turn around if she wanted to face her. The older woman kept herself busy straightening the blankets around her son. "I may have made some assumptions upon meeting you and shared them with Dimka," she admitted as her eyes lifted to meet Rose's.

Rose stood there in shock for a few moments before speaking. "After spending less than sixty seconds with me?" she whispered.

"I've regretted it every day since."

"Why?" Rose asked with a careless shrug. "If you can make assumptions about someone you met for only a moment, _why_ would you have regrets? It doesn't seem like that sort of person would _have _regrets," she said bitterly.

"Sweetheart—"

"My _name…_is Rose. Not sweetheart. And I don't know what sort of guilt you are carrying around with you, but trying to use _me _to absolve yourself of it…" Rose shook her head. "Don't do that."

Afraid to look away for even a moment, Rose backed slowly out of the room, then turned on her heel and made her way to the nurse's station.

* * *

After arguing with the woman at the nurse's station for almost ten minutes, Rose hadn't gotten anywhere. Apparently if you weren't immediate family, then you weren't in the know.

Finally giving up, she trudged to the elevators, trying to keep herself together long enough to call Tony and get an update on Dimitri. Once she was assured he would be fine, Rose pressed the button for the elevator and waited impatiently for the car to arrive.

Sighing in relief when she saw that it was empty, Rose stepped inside and hit the button that signaled she needed to go to the lobby.

* * *

"The second she walked into that room today, Liss, I just knew."

"What do you think she said to him?" Lissa asked, wide eyed with curiosity.

Rose shook her head. "I don't know. I just know that when I left his apartment that day, he wanted me to go out for lunch with him and his mom. The next time I saw him…he was packing to leave."

"Well…Rose…if she _did _say something that changed his mind about you…does that change anything for _you_?" Lissa asked softly.

Rose smiled bitterly. "Sure. It means the man I thought I'd had a hot affair with is actually a momma's boy. Nothing hot about that."

Lissa's eyes narrowed. "Uh-uh. No way. Flippant Rose is not welcome in this conversation. Make her go away!"

Rose laughed. "She's gone." Her voice was lowered to a whisper when she continued. "At the end of the day…it doesn't matter _what _she said to him, Liss. He chose to leave. And it's been screwing with my head for years. And now…I feel like he is _still _screwing with my head. I can't get answers from him because he keeps talking in circles. He wants in my bed, but…I think that's all he wants. And if he was anyone else…"

"But he's not," Lissa said softly as she reached over and gave Rose's knee a gentle squeeze.

Rose sighed. "I hate him for doing this to me. I hate him for making me be so petty that I put all the blame on him. I just fucking hate him!"

Lissa sighed. "But you told _him_ that it's not his fault. Why do you think that is, Rose?"

_Because I can't stand the thought of him tormenting himself for screwing up someone who was already screwed up. _"I don't know," Rose lied as she pushed to her feet. "I have to get back to work…if I still have a job. I just blew out of there this morning."

"I'm sure once you explain, it'll be fine," Lissa assured her.

"I hope so," Rose said with a heavy sigh. "I'll see you later."

* * *

Rose made it back to the gym and finished her work day—she was still employed, thank God. Courtney covered for her, saying she'd had had an emergency to take care of, but would be back as soon as possible.

Thoughts of Dimitri always plagued her, but today was worse than usual.

In one breath, she was telling Lissa that he only wanted her in bed, but she'd seen the look in his eyes when he'd cornered her at the Firemen's Ball. There had been a longing there that she had never seen before. And he'd been so…_gratified _when he'd realized she was jealous of the thought of him with another woman.

She needed to stop tormenting herself and make sure Dimitri got the message loud and clear: They were done. They were never going to be together again. Sexually or otherwise.

And once she made sure he was OK, that's exactly what she was going to do.

* * *

Rose slipped out of her apartment building around midnight to make her way to the hospital. The cab she'd called for was already waiting for her, and she slid in the back and gave her destination to the driver.

When she arrived she headed straight for his room, avoiding eye contact as she'd done earlier in the hopes no one would try to stop her. No one did, and she made her way to his side.

She looked down at him, again struck by how young he looked in slumber. There was a cup with water and a straw on the table beside his bed, and Rose chose to believe it meant he'd finally woken up and wanted a drink.

When Rose lifted a hand to his cheek, he instantly turned into her touch; she froze. He stopped stirring, and she let her gaze wash over him. The rise and fall of his chest was steady, and she could hear the sound of his breathing. Her eyes lifted to his slightly-parted lips. Unable to stop herself, she lowered her head and brushed her lips tenderly against his.

* * *

God, he was smelling her now? As if it wasn't bad enough that he could _see _her in his dreams, now he could _smell_ her? Dimitri stifled an agonized groan that had nothing to do with the pain in his body.

It was a moment before he recognized that he wasn't dreaming Roza was there with him, another before he felt her lips pressed against his.

And a few more to realize that the wet heat washing over his cheeks were her tears.


	15. Chapter 15

_a/n: As always, thank you for the reviews for last chapter! :)_

* * *

Warmth seeped into Dimitri's chest when Rose splayed her palm over his heart and leaned gently into him. She broke the tender kiss and touched her forehead to his. "God, Dimitri," she whispered as her fingers curled into his hospital gown.

He groaned softly, and before she could pull away, his hand cupped the nape of her neck and pulled her lips back to his. His lips skimmed hers delicately, as if anything more might frighten her. He didn't press for more; just the feel of her was enough.

It pleased him to know she wasn't making any effort to pull away, but it didn't stop him from feeling like a bastard for taking advantage of the fact that she'd been scare for him.

When he released her, she straightened, and he reached for her wrist before she could step back. "Don't go far." His voice was hoarse, his throat dry.

Rose nodded uncertainly. "Do you need a drink?"

He nodded as he fisted his hands. He placed his knuckles on the bed and tried to push himself up. He gritted his teeth but was unable to stifle a wince.

"Are you OK?" she asked softly.

"Yes," he answered as he leaned back against the pillows in a sitting position now. Her timidity surprised him. He'd seen a lot of things from her—disappointment…anger…indifference. He'd never seen her timid.

She stepped forward with the cup of water and held it out to him. He accepted it with a grateful smile, and then took a long sip through the straw.

She cleared her throat. "I'm sorry about Benito."

Dimitri wasn't able to say anything, so he just nodded with a sad smile. It was a few moments before he finally spoke. "My mother told me you stopped by yesterday. Why didn't you stay?"

Rose shrugged. "I don't…know."

"Did she upset you?" he asked.

Rose started to shake her head, and then stopped. "Maybe a little," she admitted begrudgingly. "But I think I may have upset her more."

"She'll be fine," Dimitri said dryly.

"Mr. Belikov!"

The both turned toward the door to see a sprout nurse standing there with her hands on her hips and a disapproving glare aimed in his direction. "_Where _is your sling?"

* * *

Rose wasn't sure where this honesty was coming from; she only knew she wasn't able to maintain the façade she was usually able to with him. And it scared the hell out of her. She wanted to turn around and run, but her feet wouldn't move.

She studied him while the nurse moved to his other side and chastised him for throwing his sling in the trash. Again, apparently. His lips twitched as the older woman went on and on, his tired eyes dancing as they met Rose's.

She was suddenly struck by how pale he was and stepped closer. "Are you in pain?" she asked.

"Of course he is!" the woman interrupted. "He won't take anything except for ibuprofen."

"I don't like the way Percocet makes me feel," he said with a scowl.

"We can try something else," she informed him, looking at Rose and rolling her eyes as she maneuvered his arm into the position she wanted and then secured the sling around him. "It's not like he has a headache." She turned back to Dimitri. "A building fell on you!"

"Only part of it," he muttered.

"Maybe _you'll _have better luck getting him to take something stronger," she suggested hopefully.

Rose glanced at Dimitri and he shrugged. "Stay the night."

His challenging glare told her he didn't expect her to, and she lifted her chin defiantly as she unzipped her hoodie and slung it on the chair beside his bed. "Get him something stronger."

* * *

Dimitri knew she was gone before he opened his eyes. He'd somehow managed to get her to crawl into bed with him last night, though he was pretty sure he'd have been able to talk her into anything if he'd told her he was hurting. He'd tried like hell to stay awake, but the pain meds the nurse had given him coupled with exhaustion made it a losing battle, and the heat he'd felt against his side was gone.

He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh. He wasn't thrilled with her leaving without saying goodbye, but the fact that he'd been able to get her stay—albeit with a hefty dose of manipulation—was nothing short of a miracle.

Surely he'd gained _some _ground in the last twelve hours.

* * *

"What do you mean you're leaving?" his mother demanded.

Dimitri looked up at her as he shoved some things into his bag. "I mean that now that I've gotten out of bed, I'm going to exit the hospital."

"Dimka, you can't leave," his mother said patiently.

"Yes, I can," he argued. "I've been here for three days. I'm not hooked to an IV, all of my drugs are in pill form, and I can stay in bed at home."

"The doctor said—"

"I'm well aware that I'm leaving against medical advice."

She sighed heavily. "Dimka—"

"Let it go," he warned.

"You'll have to forgive me eventually."

Her voice was so low he barely heard her, and when her words finally registered, he froze. "I don't know what you're talking about," he insisted.

"You can't even look at me!"

Dimitri lifted his gaze to his mother's and had to force himself to hold it. "It's not on purpose."

"I know that," she said. "But you can't let some girl—"

"She wasn't 'some girl,'" he snapped. "But I ended up treating her like that, didn't I?"

"Because of me." His mother looked so miserable. He wanted to be able to tell her he didn't blame her, but he knew that somewhere inside of him, he did.

"Because of _me_," he exploded. "It was my choice to let her go. Hell—to _push_ her away and then leave her. Yeah. I let the words you said get to me. But in the end, it was my decision. _I'm_ the one who fucked up. Not you. _I'm_ the one who hurt her, who fucking broke her. Not you."

He zipped his back up and wanted to storm to the door, but his body wouldn't let him. He settled for near stumbling and stopped by his mother's side.

"_I'm_ the one who can't fucking live without her. Not you."

* * *

There was a taxi waiting by the curb when he finally made it to the entrance of the hospital, and after giving the cabbie directions he settled back into the seat and shifted in an effort to get comfortable. But he couldn't. He'd just blown up at his mother. It was something he'd never done before, and something he hoped to never do again. But after five years of trying to suppress his anger, something had snapped and he'd been unable to squelch it any longer.

He could only hope she'd be able to forgive him. Even if he hadn't been able to forgive her.

* * *

Rose smiled at the doorman as she stepped into the elevator, then leaned against the railing at the back of the car. It had been a long day at the gym. With the firefighters still not training, it left a large chunk of time to find busy work. And lots of time to think. She'd, of course, thought about Dimitri all day and the fact that she'd skipped out on him.

She'd tried to wake him to tell him goodbye, but the pain pills must have knocked him right out; he hadn't stirred. She'd toyed with the idea of stopping by after work, but opted not to in case his mother was there. The last thing she needed was another run in with Olena Belikov. Especially while Dimitri was awake. He'd always spoken of his mother with obvious adoration, and Rose was afraid the look on her face when she was around her would say it all.

No. She'd go back in the middle of the night again to check on him.

The elevator dinged and she pushed away from the wall and stepped out of the doors and froze. Then rushed forward.

"Dimitri?" she asked worriedly as she lowered herself to a crouch beside him. His forehead was drenched with sweat and she panicked.

"Roza?"

"God, Dimitri. They let you leave the hospital?" she asked in disbelief.

He shook his head.

"Wha—"

"I busted out," he said with a forced laugh.

"Well, you need to bust back in!" she snapped as she placed a hand on his forehead. "You're burning up!"

He shook his head. "Don't want to go back there," he insisted.

"Dimi—"

He gripped the hem of her t-shirt and she had to use her hand on the floor to steady herself so she didn't fall on him.

"Can I stay with you?" he rasped.

Rose could just imagine the look on her face as she glared at him. It was moment before she answered.

"If your fever doesn't break in a few hours, you're going back to the hospital," she said through gritted teeth.

His hold on her shirt tightened and she couldn't stop herself from falling this time, landing in an ungraceful heap on his lap.

"Deal," he agreed.


	16. Chapter 16

_a/n: Thank you all so much for the reviews for last chapter! :)_

* * *

"He's there _now_?"

"Yep."

"Do you need me to come over and run interference?" Lissa asked, her voice laced with amusement. "I could bring Zander. He's colicky, and there is _nothing_ like a screaming baby to kill your libido."

"I think I can handle it," Rose remarked dryly as she opened the refrigerator and poured herself a glass of coke.

"Well…you _did _kiss him," Lissa reminded her cattily.

"I'm rolling my eyes at you," she informed her friend as she did just that.

Lissa giggled. "For the record, I'm still mad at him for what he did to you. But I have to be honest—I've been thinking about how explosive the sex will be when you finally guys do it again."

"Hey! There will be no…doing of the…it," Rose sputtered, thankful she hadn't yet taken a drink.

"Rose, you _kissed _him," Lissa said.

"Kissing doesn't always lead to more." She opened the refrigerator and put the two liter bottle back on the top shelf, then closed it again.

"Yeah, you keep telling yourself that," Lissa scoffed. "I thought you guys really were over. But now…this is quite the development."

"I'm going to let you go now, because…you're kind of pissing me off."

Lissa laughed. "It's only because you know I'm right."

"Bye, Liss," Rose said, the closed her phone. She jumped when she saw Dimitri standing in the doorway. "I thought you were sleeping on the couch," she said breathlessly, her hand on her chest.

Dimitri grinned weakly. "What exactly is the 'doing of the it?'" he asked.

Rose arched her brows. "So…you're staying at my place _and _you're eavesdropping on my phone calls? Where are your manners, Belikov?"

His grin widened. "I think I should come clean. I plan on taking full advantage of the fact that you feel bad for me," he admitted.

"Then I should probably come clean, too," Rose conceded. "I wasn't born yesterday. I've already figured that out. And I don't feel _that _bad for you."

"Yes, you do," he said softly. "Though you'll never admit it out loud."

Rose rolled her eyes. "You need to get back on the couch. I have to call Adrian and—"

"Adrian?" Dimitri asked as his eyes narrowed. "Why do you need to call _him_?"

"Check the jealousy," Rose remarked dryly. "His fiancé's a doctor, and I want to know what to do to help with your fever."

"Can't you just text him?" Dimitri muttered.

Rose went on as if he hadn't spoken. "I'm guessing being on your feet isn't helping. Back to the couch."

"My clothes are soaked," Dimitri informed her as he turned around and headed toward the living room. "I think I should probably take them off. I need a sponge bath."

"I'm not here to be your naughty nurse," she said primly, snagging her phone back up off the counter and following him out of the kitchen. Despite her assertion, an image of a naked Dimitri lying in her bed while she ran a dripping sponge over his warm flesh raced through her mind. She was pretty sure her _own _temperature had just risen.

Shaking her head, she hit speed dial three on her phone and plopped down onto the overstuffed chair while Dimitri dropped down onto the couch.

"Hey, gorgeous."

She laughed at Adrian's greeting. "Hey yourself, handsome. Is the fiancé around?"

Dimitri's head whipped around and he glared at her. Amused, she covered the receiver with her hand. "Would it be better for you if I left the room?" she asked, goading him.

He shook his head.

"Yeah," Adrian answered, his voice laced with amusement. "If you want to talk to her, why didn't you dial her number?"

"Because I wanted to hear your voice," she mocked. "Hey—I have a friend here who has a fever, and I need to know what to do for it."

There was a short pause before Adrian spoke again. "Male or female?"

"What difference does that make?" Rose asked shrilly.

"Humor me."

"Male," Rose whispered. A sideways glance at Dimitri let her know his gaze was still fixed on her face.

Adrian laughed. "Hold on for just a minute."

The brief phone call told her that depending on Dimitri's temperature, he either needed to go back to the hospital immediately, or take a bath in tepid water to try and lower it. He also needed to take something for it, and Rose didn't have anything in the house. "Did the hospital give you any prescriptions that need to be filled?" she asked.

He nodded and reached for his bag beside the couch.

"I'm going to go start the bath," she said as she stood. "You can take one while I go get them filled. Did you come straight here from the hospital?"

Dimitri nodded.

"If you give me your keys, I'll stop by your place and get you some clean clothes," she told him.

He grinned. "Anxious to get into my drawers?" he teased.

Rose rolled her eyes and headed out of the room. "You wish, Belikov," she sneered over her shoulder.

"Only every second, Hathaway. Only every second."

* * *

Rose knew she was playing with fire allowing Dimitri to stay with her. She should have insisted on walking him home and checking on him at regular intervals. Or better yet, forced him to go back to the hospital. She kept telling herself it was the haunted look in his eyes when she'd mentioned Benito that kept her from doing otherwise. But she knew it was more than that.

According to the newspaper article she'd read, Dimitri had been next to Benito when the building collapsed. A shiver raced over her spine at the thought of what Dimitri had seen, at how terrified he must have been. It so easily could've been him who'd been killed when the roof caved in. It was a miracle it hadn't been, and Rose felt guilty for being thankful it wasn't.

She dropped his prescriptions off at the drug store, went to his house to get some of things, and then doubled back to pick up his meds before heading back to her place. She'd been surprised to find a picture of herself on top of his dresser when she'd walked into his bedroom. She, of course, had pictures of him, too, but she'd taken them down and packed them away a long time ago.

* * *

Dimitri's muscles were so sore that it took every ounce of strength he had to climb out of the bathtub. Just stepping into his boxer briefs was enough to exhaust him. He glanced wistfully at Rose's bed, but instead of falling into it and burying his face in her pillow for a hint of her scent as he wanted to do, he stumbled past and made his way back to the living room. He was asleep before his head even hit the pillow.

* * *

Dimitri's eyes opened a short time later to wet kisses and whining. A smile spread immediately across his face as he reached for blonde hair and ran his hand over it. "Hey, girl," he said softly, coming eye to eye with the golden retriever.

She upped the whining and nudged his neck with her nose.

"She was running circles around me the whole time I was at your house," Rose explained as she dropped his overnight bag by the door and pulled her hoodie off. "I think she smelled you on me."

His gaze smoldered at the implication, but Rose ignored it.

"I couldn't leave her there."

"You can have dogs here?"

Rose grinned. "The doorman likes me."

"I'll bet he does," Dimitri growled.

"Do you feel any better? You look better."

He nodded. "I think my fever's gone down, but my body aches."

Rose bent over and unzipped his bag, rummaging through it. "I have something for that."

She straightened with two bottles of pills and opened them, pouring one of each into her palm.

"Rose—" Dimitri said hesitantly.

"It's _just _ibuprofen," Rose said.

He nodded.

"And vicodin."

He eyed her warily. "The rules haven't changed, Dimitri. If you're spending the night with me, you're taking the pain killers."

His gaze locked on hers as he took them from her; his fingertips grazed lightly over her palm and the jolt of electricity she felt made her flinch.

"I'll go get you some water and crackers," she said as she swiftly pulled her hand away. "You really shouldn't take those on an empty stomach. And you better be wearing more than boxers when I get back!"

His knowing chuckle followed her all the way into the kitchen.


	17. Chapter 17

_a/n: Hey, guys. I just want to say thanks for all of the well-wishes. I am fine. I just had to pick up a second job because I'm having a hard time making ends meet, and it has cut into my free time. But I can't tell you how much your concern means to me. :)_

_Thank you all so much for the reviews for last chapter!_

* * *

Rose had forgotten how much Dimitri's body temperature climbed while he slept. She'd made certain it wasn't a fever—his forehead felt fine and there was no gleam of sweat on his skin—but she couldn't remember it being like this when she'd spent the night with him in the hospital. Of course, that could have been because they'd both been wearing something.

Dimitri was in only his boxer briefs—something Rose had expressly forbidden; he must have woken up and taken his pajama bottoms off—and she was wearing shorts and a cami. Had she known she'd be sleeping with him, she would have worn more.

She was lying on her back, and Dimitri had a thigh slung over hers, his heavy arm over her waist locking her against him. His heat seeped into her, and when she shifted to try and put some space in between them, he pulled her tighter against him. Her lips parted and she sucked in a shaky breath when she felt his arousal pressing against her leg. He'd taken vicodin for crying out loud. Shouldn't that have hindered his ability to become aroused? Freaking overachiever.

Sighing, Rose ran a hand through her hair and lifted her head to look at the clock. Two a.m. She dropped her head down onto the pillow and tried to sleep, but it wouldn't come. She had no doubt that if she was on the couch right now, she'd be snoozing. But Dimitri had blown that idea right out of the water.

_Rose felt Dimitri's gaze on her as she walked out of the bathroom, suddenly self-conscious in her coral colored cami with the lace just above her breasts and the short white shorts she'd donned. She hated that he could do this to her. She never worried about how she looked, but with Dimitri, she always wanted him to like what he was seeing. It made no sense to her since she kept telling herself nothing was going to happen, but the feeling was there. Walking over to the vacant side of her queen sized bed, she reached for the pillow. "Good night," she said._

_Before she could pull her arm back, Dimitri's hand darted out and snagged her wrist. "Where do you think you're going?" he demanded, his eyes darkening._

_Rose swallowed past the sudden lump of nervousness in her throat. "To the couch," she said, angry at herself when her voice didn't come out as steady as she'd hoped._

_Dimitri shook his head. "A deal's a deal, Roza," he informed her. "I took the pain pills. The payment is a night in bed with me."_

_She studied his face for a long minute before sighing and placing a knee on the bed. "This isn't going to change anything," she mumbled._

"_Humor me." Still holding her wrist, he tugged and she fell gracelessly against the mattress with an 'oof;' he rearranged her body she so was lying next to him. To her surprise, he'd left a respectable amount of distance between them._

Of course, that distance hadn't lasted long, hence her current predicament. When Dimitri sighed in his sleep and huddled closer to her, Rose felt her body instantly respond. Her nipples tightened until they were aching, and she felt a scorching heat between her thighs. _It's purely physical, _she told herself. _This would happen with any man._

But this wasn't _any_ man. It was Dimitri. And he was the only one who had ever been able to make her heart ache.

He was manipulating his way back into her life; she knew he was. And she wanted to be angry with him, but the truth was that she wanted him _in _her life just as much as she didn't. Especially now, when it was clear how quickly he could be gone. And she wasn't stupid. Rose knew no one was able to manipulate you unless you let them, and she'd practically told him to bring it on.

Rose froze, her thoughts coming to a halt as Dimitri's hand crept higher until he was cupping her breast. Her breath hitched and she closed her eyes, listening for a moment before slowly exhaling. _His _breathing hadn't changed. He was still asleep. But that didn't matter to her body; her nipple strained against his palm, and she bit down on her lower lip to stifle a soft moan.

Had she not been pinned against him, she would have jumped up from the mattress and fled the room. But she was, and there was no need to draw attention to a situation Dimitri probably wasn't even aware of. If his hand started roaming—well. _That _would be another story.

Rose lay there staring at the ceiling, wondering how long she could let him stay before it was obvious to him she was at odds over what to do about him—or had she already crossed that line?

* * *

When Rose awoke the next morning, it was to Dimitri stretching beside her. She made a move to roll off the bed, but as usual, he was too quick for her. She heard him wince from the exertion of hauling her beneath him. He placed his hands on either side of her head, and his knees pressed tightly against her outer thighs.

"What?" she asked, unable to tear her gaze from his.

He moved slowly, his fingers encircling her wrists as he pushed them above her head on the mattress. His upper body was just inches from hers when he leaned down and nuzzled her neck. "Good morning," he said, voice rough from a drug-induced slumber.

"Good morning," she returned, surprised at her breathlessness.

"I forgot how much I love waking up next to you," he said, his breath warm against her skin as he threaded his fingers through hers.

She shivered. "I told you…this isn't…going to work."

He lifted his head, his eyes dancing as he looked down at her. "Yes, I believe you did tell me that," he agreed.

"How are your ribs?" she blurted, desperate to change the subject.

"They hurt like hell." He gave her a lopsided grin she'd never seen on him before. "Feels like a fucking building fell on me or something," he teased.

"That's not funny!" she snapped, her body jerking against his as she struggled to free herself.

"Hey," he said softly, his knees tightening to stop her movements. "I know it's not funny. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have joked about it."

Without even realizing what was coming, Rose burst into tears.


	18. Chapter 18

_a/n: I totally shirked household duties to write today. ;)_

_I hope you enjoy this chapter!_

* * *

"Roza," he said, his voice thick with emotion.

His arms came around her, and he drew her against his chest. She immediately began struggling again. "Dammit, Roza." His hissed with pain. "Would you please stop fighting me for five _fucking_ seconds?"

"If it hurts you so much, why don't you just let me go?" she shot back.

"Because letting you go hurts more than my ribs ever fucking could!" he snapped angrily.

As his words sunk in, her movements ceased. To her chagrin fresh tears coursed down her cheeks; she blinked furiously in an attempt to stop them, but it didn't help. Through her own watery gaze, she saw Dimitri's eyes soften, and when he leaned forward to kiss her tears away, they fell even harder. His mouth grazed her cheeks, her jaw, the corners of her eyes…everywhere but her lips.

She had no idea how long they lay like that, Dimitri kissing her tears away as the flowed down her cheeks. But his kisses didn't stop until after her tears; still, he left her mouth untouched. He pulled back from her, brushing her hair away from her face. "Better?" he asked softly.

Rose bit down on her lower lip and nodded.

"Good." He let her go and rolled over onto his back, tossing an arm over his head.

Rose quickly leapt out of bed and grabbed a pair of sweatpants out of her second dresser drawer. "I have to go let Hattie out," she said quietly as she left the room.

* * *

"Do you want an omelet?" Rose asked half an hour later when Dimitri walked into the kitchen, Hattie hot on his heels with her tongue hanging out of the side of her mouth and her tail wagging feverishly. To her relief (and maybe just a teensy bit of dismay) he'd put on a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt.

He frowned. "You're cooking?"

"It's an omelet," she said dryly.

"I know but…do you not remember the time you boiled pasta dry?" he asked.

Rose sighed heavily. "I thought we agreed to never talk about that again."

Dimitri grinned as he held his hands up in front of himself as a sign of surrender. "I'd love an omelet."

Rose nodded. "I have to go to work today," she informed him.

"OK."

"Benito's funeral is tomorrow," she said quietly.

"I know."

"Do you feel up to going?" she asked.

"Of course," he said quickly, wincing as he sat down at the kitchen table.

Rose cleared her throat. "I'm going, too," she replied. "I met his wife, Cheryl, when I was out with a few of the guys one night, and I just…I know I don't know her very well, but…I knew him and…" Her voice trailed off uncertainly.

"I'm sure she'd appreciate the show of support," Dimitri said swiftly.

She nodded, appreciating the reassurance. "Do you need me to stop by your place and pick up something for you to wear?" she asked.

Dimitri shook his head. "We can stop on the way and I'll just change there. That way I can grab a few more things."

Rose sighed. "For what, Dimitri? I mean…how _long_ do you plan on staying?"

* * *

_As long as it takes. _"I'm not sure," he said instead.

Her eyes narrowed. "Until I kick you out?"

His lips twitched. "Possibly," he answered honestly.

She pointed the spatula at him. "You're infuriating."

"So are you, but luckily, I find that temper of yours hot as fucking hell, so it works out well," he teased.

She ignored him as she turned the burner off and lifted the pan, letting the omelet slide onto one of the plates. She cut it in half and separated it, then grabbed two forks from the drawer and headed back to the table. When she sat down across from him, he hooked his foot underneath he chair and pulled her closer to him.

"Do you want to talk about what happened this morning?" he asked.

"No." She shoved a bite of her omelet into her mouth.

"I upset you," he persisted, surprised when she didn't move her chair back where it had been.

"What's new?" she scoffed.

"Usually I _know _when I'm going to upset you."

"It was stupid, OK? I'm emotional, and it's time for my…it's just not a good time of the month for me," she said. "That's all."

"Roza—"

She got up from the table and dumped the rest of her omelet into the garbage can. "I have to get ready for work."

* * *

Dimitri wasn't sure what time Rose got home from work, but he was pretty sure it wasn't noon. As the key turned in the lock, he wondered if she'd left early to check on him and couldn't hide the smirk on his face.

But when the door opened, it wasn't Rose who stepped through. It was Christian, and if the scowl on his face was any indication, he was just as unhappy to see Dimitri as Dimitri was to see him.

Christian whistled and grabbed the leash on the stand beside the door when Hattie came running. "Rose informed me I needed to come over to let your dog out," he said shortly.

Dimitri made his way to his feet, struggling to hide the pain caused from the effort. "I can do that myself," he snapped.

Christian arched a brow. "Well, she doesn't think you can, and to be honest, I'm more afraid of her than I am of you. _She'd _never let me break her nose," he taunted.

_"Let_ being the operative word," Dimitri growled.

Without saying anything else, Christian clipped the leash onto Dimitri's dog's collar and headed back out of the apartment. Dimitri couldn't help but see the irony of the situation—all these years, Christian had been helping take care of Roza when _he _should have been the one doing it—or trying, she was damn stubborn, after all—and now he was here taking care of Dimitri's fucking dog. If that wasn't a blow to the ego, he didn't know what was.

Less than fifteen minutes later, the front door opened again, and Christian walked in. He let Hattie go and tossed her leash back on the stand. "For the record, I think you're a dick for conning your way into her apartment," Christian goaded.

Having resumed his standing position, Dimitri crossed his arms over his chest. "Yeah, well, for the record, I don't think it's working," he replied.

The other man grinned. "Glad to hear it."


	19. Chapter 19

_a/n: Thank you all so much for the reviews for last chapter! :)_

_And to my anonymous reviewer who won't give up:_

******_"It is impossible to discourage the real writers - they don't give a damn what you say, they're going to write." ~Sinclair Lewis_~**

* * *

"I can't go back to work even on light duty?" Dimitri growled.

Rose pursed her lips as the doctor standing across from him arched a brow. "Mr. Belikov, if I thought for one second you would _stay _on light duty, I'd release you to go back to work under those conditions. But I don't believe you will."

"I—"

"What do _you _think?" The doctor looked pointedly as Rose.

Rose continued to chew on her lower lip for a moment. "This is really none of my business," she finally answered as she shook her head.

"I thought you were caring for him," the doctor said, her brows drawing together.

"I don't care for him!" Rose said quickly, and then flushed. "I mean…he's just staying with me so he's not alone. He's really just taking care of himself."

"And how's he doing?" the older woman pressed.

Rose sighed. "He tried to take the dog for a walk yesterday," she admitted, though she knew why. He was pissed that Christian had to step in and handle even the smallest part of his life, and while Rose didn't blame him, it was no excuse to risk his recovery.

"Roza!" Dimitri growled.

She glared at him. "And when he got home, he _barely_ made it to the couch before he collapsed," she went on. "He was breathing heavily, and he could hardly move this morning."

Dimitri glared back and she gave him a smug grin.

"Well, that does it," the doctor said, closing her chart. "I hope your place is nice and spacious, because right now, I'm not sure _when _I'll be able to release him to go back to work."

Rose's jaw dropped, and when she looked at Dimitri, he was giving her the smug look she'd just bestowed upon him. Her glare returned immediately.

"You're in rough shape, Mr. Belikov," the doctor continued. "If you don't take it easy, your recovery time is only going to lengthen. You need to stay off your feet. You're lucky you have someone to help you out."

"Fine," he said through gritted teeth.

The doctor pursed her lips, and Rose could tell the woman was fighting a grin.

"Is that all?" Dimitri snapped.

The doctor was unable to hold back a laugh. "Yes, Mr. Belikov. That is all."

* * *

"You were kind of rude to her," Rose said as she followed him into her apartment and tossed her keys onto the stand just inside the door. She'd avoided conversation in the taxi because he'd been scowling. Now that his back was to her, it was much easier to talk to him.

"She put me on fucking bed rest," he muttered.

"Because you won't listen to anything she says," Rose reminded him as she took off her hoodie and the moved further into the room and laid it on the back of an overstuffed chair. And if he didn't _start _listening, there was no telling how long he'd try to stay here.

She heard him wince as he lowered himself down onto the couch, but didn't comment. He was already pissed off enough without her goading him further. "Do you want some lunch?" she asked.

He frowned. "It's not going to be burnt grilled cheese again, is it?"

Rose laughed. "No. Cold ham and cheese. Even I can't screw that up," she teased.

Dimitri sighed. "Sounds good," he said halfheartedly.

Rose made her way into the kitchen and busied herself with making lunch. Dimitri had been a bear since Benito's funeral, and it didn't take much to figure out what was probably going through his mind. And she didn't like knowing that one bit. He'd shared a few anecdotes at the funeral, and the love and adoration he'd felt for his fallen brother were obvious. Seeing that side of him…so caring and tender…it was a side of him she didn't _want_ to see.

She'd seen it before, and it was what made her fall in love with him. She sighed a she slammed the knife down angrily, cutting his sandwich in two.

This was the one night stand that wouldn't end.

* * *

The heat was what pulled her from sleep. She shouldn't be this hot. She'd cranked the air conditioner before she'd crawled into bed. She groaned sleepily and stretched. When her breasts pressed against something rock solid, she froze. Her eyes flew open and sure enough…Dimitri's chest. The body pillow she'd bought the other day and placed strategically between them at night was nowhere to be found. She sighed as she rolled away, but Dimitri's grip on her tightened.

"What are you doing?" she asked, her voice hoarse from sleep.

"Hampering your escape," he teased.

Her eyes narrowed shrewdly. "Where is the body pillow?" she demanded.

"I kicked it off the foot of the bed," he said casually.

"Why?" she asked, aware that her body was sliding across the mattress, closing the already minute amount of space between them.

He leaned down and nuzzled her neck. _Him and his freaking nuzzling, _she thought as she shivered.

"Because it's not as soft as you are," he said gruffly.

He pulled back, and she lifted her eyes to his. His pupils were dilated, his eyes darkening with desire. "Stop looking at me like you want to eat me," she said breathlessly as she felt her heart start to hammer in her chest.

He grinned down at her. "I don't want to eat you," he assured her. "At lease…not yet. Just a little taste is fine for now."

"Dimi—"

She was cut off when he sealed his mouth over hers, his tongue thrusting forth. She sighed beneath his kiss. He was never one for long and leisurely kisses, and she liked that. It was always hot and steamy…a promise of where things were going to go.

She clawed at his chest, cursing the t-shirt he was wearing as she fisted her hand around it. The one time she wanted him shirtless…

She groaned as his tongue brushed against hers, pressing her body closer. His hand gripped her thigh, pulling it over his as he rolled them onto his back. When he grunted, she pulled away, fighting for breath. "Oh, God," she said as she tried to pull away. His hands lifted to her waist and he gripped her. "I hurt you," she said, smoothing her hands over his t-shirt. She could feel his muscles bunching beneath her touch.

"Sssh." He lifted a hand and pushed her hair over her shoulder. "I haven't felt this good in days, Roza," he swore. "Please…don't stop."

His voice was as pleading as his eyes, and if he'd commanded her…if he'd ordered her to kiss him back, she would have been able to resist. But Dimitri wasn't one for begging.

And _that _was something she couldn't turn away from.

Her hands travelled up over his pecs until her fingers curled over his shoulders. Slowly, with her eyes still locked on his, she leaned forward to finish what he'd started.


	20. Chapter 20

_a/n: Thank you all so much for the reviews for last chapter. _

_I hope you enjoy this one! It's a bit short, but I probably won't be able to write again until the weekend, and I wanted to get this posted. You've been waiting oh-so-patiently for it. ;)_

* * *

When Rose felt his erection throbbing between her thighs she groaned, tilting her head to the side in an effort to deepen the kiss. One hand stayed on his shoulder while the other slid down his chest, reaching impatiently for the hem of his t-shirt. Her palm moved over the scorching taut skin of his stomach, reveling in the way his muscles tensed beneath her touch.

She adjusted her lower body so her center was flush with his cock, rocking her lower body back and forth over his length. Desperate for air, she broke their kiss with a gasp, and then bit down on her lower lip as she focused on the friction between her legs.

"You're soaked, Rose," Dimitri growled. "I can feel you through my fucking pajama bottoms."

She laughed huskily, as her forehead dropped to his chest. "Surprised, Professor?"

* * *

_Professor. _

The word reverberated through him, reminding him of every single time he'd taken her to bed. He felt is cock jolt as the memories assaulted him, his breathing becoming more labored.

His hand gripped her hips, lifting her just a bit, then stilling her. Her head flew up off his chest and accusatory eyes met his. He grinned. "Pull my pants down," he told her.

Her brows lifted. "Too lazy, Belikov?" she teased.

"_Professor_," he corrected harshly.

"Professor," she whispered as her eyes darkened. She shimmied further down his body, then reached for the waist of his pajama bottoms and tugged. He lifted his hips to aid her and she froze when they were mid-thigh.

"Commando," she said appreciatively as his erection sprung free, bobbing a few times before settling against his belly.

"That's good," he said. "Now you."

"Me?" she asked in surprise.

He nodded slowly. "Take off your shorts, Roza," he said, softening his tone so it at least resembled a request. "And panties if you're wearing them."

"You can't…" She hesitated, running her hand grazed over his chest. "Your ribs," she reminded him.

"I know my limits," he persisted.

She took a deep breath before sliding off the bed, then pushed her shorts and panties down over her legs and kicked them off to the side.

"T-shirt, too," he ordered huskily, surprised when she immediately complied.

His breath quickened at the sight of her naked body, and when she lifted her eyes to his, he arched a brow and crooked a finger at her. Continuing to stun him, she placed one knee on the bed beside his ankle, then the other and crawled up his body until her center was flush with his dick. He groaned at the contact he'd been craving for half a decade.

He stifled a groan of pain as he lifted his upper body off the mattress as much as he could, his hand clasping the nape of her neck and hauling her down against his chest. Her palms splayed over his chest and her lower body began moving back and forth over his. His tongue plunged forth, hot and hard as he assaulted her mouth with violent strokes.

Rose whimpered as his hands found their way to her breasts to tug on her nipples. He was rewarded with a flood of warmth between her thighs, and flattened his palms against her breasts, loosening his grip as he moved his hands in a circular motion.

When her pace quickened, he let her breasts go and clasped her thighs, stilling her. She moaned in displeasure as she tore her lips from his. "Dimitri!" she scolded breathlessly.

He chuckled. "Easy, wildcat," he scolded teasingly. "I enjoy watching you come. Take it down a notch so I don't miss it."

She sighed in frustration, using her hands to push her upper body from his. He reached between her legs and separated her folds so her clit was resting flush against him.

"There," he said triumphantly as his hands settled on her thighs. He grasped them tightly, pushing her back just a bit. Inhaling sharply, she let her head tip backwards; Dimitri could just make out the pulse in her neck as she struggled for air. He wished he could lift himself enough to brush kisses over it.

Her legs were already trembling beneath his touch; it was clear she wasn't going to last long. He jerked her forward, setting a leisurely pace as her body slid back and forth against his. It was a damn good thing _she _was going to come quickly, because if she didn't hurry, he'd be the one getting off. And that didn't fit into his plans.

* * *

Rose tried to hasten the tempo, but Dimitri's hold on her was implacable. Her thighs tightened around his and she felt her body stiffen with the need for release. She slumped forward until she was lying against him; her hips the only part of her body moving. "Please," she begged brokenly. "I need…oh, _God_, Dimitri. I need…to…come!"

He must have read the urgency in her voice, because her body was suddenly soaring back and forth over his, the moisture between her legs easing the friction. "Oh," she moaned. Her mouth opened as she came, her top teeth digging into the flesh beneath his t-shirt. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she heard him curse, but it didn't stop her from sinking her teeth into his flesh as she found her release.

* * *

Minutes later, her body was still heaving against his. "Oh, _fuck," _she whispered as she slid off him and until she was lying by his side.

"Yeah."

She laughed weakly as she lifted her head off the mattress. "That was amaz…" She frowned suddenly. "You didn't come."

"No," he agreed. "I didn't come."

She grinned saucily. "I can take care of that."

His hand shot out and snagged her wrist just before her hand encircled his erection. His dick jerked in protest, but he ignored it.

"Tonight isn't about me," he informed her as he rolled onto his side, fighting back a wince.

"Dimitri…" She laughed nervously.

"Tonight is about _you,_" he informed her; her hips arched up off the mattress when he thrust two thick fingers inside of her. "And I'm not through with you yet."


	21. Chapter 21

_a/n: Thank you so much for the reviews for last chapter! :)_

* * *

Rose stood in front of the coffee pot, inhaling the comforting scent and willing it to brew faster as she lifted her arms into the air and stretched. She was exhausted. Thankfully Courtney had asked her earlier in the week to switch shifts, giving her today off. Mustering enough energy just to make it out the front door today was going to take a herculean effort.

True to his word, Dimitri had made last night all about her; her sore muscles could attest to it. She'd lost count of many times he'd woken her up, bringing her to the edge only to pull back before he'd finally let her come—not that she was complaining. It had been a long time since anyone had exerted himself enough to make sure she was so thoroughly pleasured. She refused to think just _how_ long.

_Five years_ her mind screamed tauntingly.

"Shut up," she muttered under her breath, fully aware she was talking to herself.

She stiffened when she felt a pair of arms slide around her waist, then the feel of the coarse hair on Dimitri's jaw against her neck as he nuzzled her. "Good morning," he mumbled sleepily. A trace of mint on his breath let her know he'd taken the time to brush his teeth before he'd sauntered in. Shirtless.

"Good morning," she returned curtly, surprised she hadn't heard him enter the room. _Get it together, Hathaway _she scolded herself. _It was _just_ messing around._

She felt Dimitri chuckle against her neck before his tongue slipped out and traced a leisurely path along her bare shoulder. "Relax, Roza" he commanded softly as one of his hands reached beneath the hem of her tank top; his palm splayed possessively over the skin on her belly and hauled her back against his warm body.

"Look…about last night…"

"It was fucking amazing." His voice was husky from just waking up.

"Ahhh…sure," Rose said noncommittally as she tried to pull away; his hold only tightened, keeping her locked in place.

Another chuckle, then his lips closed over the damp spot his tongue had left behind and sucked gently; Rose was unable to hide her trembling, and when his hand traveled up over her rib cage and to cup her breast, she moaned as her head fell back against his shoulder. He squeezed tenderly, then his finger and thumb tugged her nipple and she felt the dampness between her thighs.

"Stop," she said half-heartedly, startled when his hands left her and he took a step backward, then sideways to grab a mug from the cupboard. Ok, so maybe she hadn't _actually _wanted him to stop, but she put some distance between them anyway to try and clear her head.

* * *

Knowing she was going to pull away didn't make the reality of it any easier. Dimitri held back a frustrated sigh as he pulled a mug down from the cupboard and placed it next to the coffeemaker, then turned to face her. He leaned a hip against the counter and crossed his arms over his chest. "Clearly we need to talk," he said dryly.

Rose shrugged casually, but he knew her indifference was forced. There was no way she was unaffected by what had happened between them last night. "It was just…messing around," she insisted in a voice that was barely audible.

Her statement pissed him off. It hadn't been just 'messing around' with them for a long time. Those first few times back in Maine, yeah. They'd been fucking around. But it hadn't taken long for that to change. He cocked a brow. "Is _that _what it was?" he pressed, unwilling to let it go.

Rose laughed nervously as she grabbed the coffeepot from its warming plate and filled her mug. "Of course," she answered breezily, not meeting his eyes.

"OK," he said slowly. "And…who _else_ are you 'messing around' with?"

Her head snapped up, her eyes sparking with the fire he loved. "No one," she bit out.

"Good. Let's keep it that way," he said, filling his own mug.

Rose's jaw dropped. "You—"

"Are not willing to share you," he cut in. "I don't mind just fucking around with you, Roza. But it doesn't mean you'll be doing it with anyone else."

Every word was a lie. 'Fucking around' with her was a huge gamble, but if there was one thing he'd learned over the last few weeks, it was that Roza was stubborn as hell. So he'd play her game long enough to get to her, but when it was clear she was breaking, that's when it would _really_ be game on.

Rose sighed. "Fine," she said through gritted teeth. "I'll _only_ mess around with _you_, but just so you know—it doesn't mean anything, Dimitri."

He shrugged as he took a sip of coffee. "I'm OK with that," he agreed. "Just as long as you realize that I'm only ok with it…for _now_."

* * *

"No. For_ever," _Rose blurted, her cheeks heating immediately when she realized how it sounded.

Dimitri's eyes twinkled. "I'm OK with forever."

"I…that…" Rose stammered, then took a deep breath and tried to collect herself. "That is _not _what I meant."

Dimitri put his coffee cup on the counter and strode forward, taking hers from her hands and setting it down next to his. "I won't let you take it back, wildcat," he said as his arms wrapped around her waist.

"Wildcat?" she asked with a frown.

He grinned. "I have the bite marks to prove it," he teased.

"I'm sorry about that," she muttered.

"I'm not. I love making you lose control, Roza," he said gruffly as he lowered his lips until they were hovering over hers. "And knowing I can drive you wild enough to bite me…sexy as fucking hell. It's going to happen again."

His breath was warm against her lips as he spoke, and she felt her heartbeat pick up in anticipation. He just stood there for a moment, clearly more patient than she was, before she finally tangled her fingers in his hair and tugged his face down closing the last bit of distance between them.


	22. Chapter 22

_a/n: I know you are all waiting for Rose to come to some sort of closure on what happened five years ago. It's on it's way; I promise. :)_

_Thank you all so much for the reviews for last chapter. I hope you enjoy this one!_

* * *

Rose could hardly believe she was cuddled up on her couch with Dimitri. It was no surprise to her that he was there; he'd been trying to elbow his way back into her life since they'd locked eyes that morning across the gym. No. The surprise was that she was allowing it. But she figured that if they were going to play nice—however much it revolved around their sexual compatibility—she'd take full advantage of the situation. Snuggling included. She refused to dwell on the fact that Dimitri had been the only man she'd ever cuddled with—aside from Adrian. But that wasn't the same thing. Not even close.

She kept reminding herself that their circumstances were different this time. She knew how things were going to end going in. There was no danger of getting hurt. When they'd had enough of each other (though she couldn't imagine _that_ would be anytime soon,) they'd go their separate ways. No hard feelings. And it made her feel better to know she was being up front with Dimitri, too, however resistant he was to the arrangement. She was in no way leading him on. It was an 'enter at your own risk' type of relationship. She wouldn't be responsible for any emotional fallout on Dimitri's part and vice versa.

The clinking sound of keys just outside of her door, then sliding into the lock caused her eyes to widen, and she tried to pull away from Dimitri. The arm he had slung over her shoulders tightened, hindering any movement. "Let go!" she hissed.

He arched a challenging brow as his eyes darkened. It wasn't the same shade of brown they turned into when he was aroused. They were so dark they were almost black with anger. She pushed at his chest, but it was too late. The door opened and Christian stepped inside, freezing at the sight before him.

It was silent for a moment before he finally spoke. "Isn't this cozy?" he commented dryly.

Deciding that playing dirty was the only way to get out of his hold, Rose grabbed Dimitri's side and pinched as hard as she could until he let her go with a wince. Glowering at him, she sprung to her feet. "I'm sorry," she said, facing Christian. "Courtney asked me to switch shifts with her, so I don't have to work today. I forgot to call and tell you that I don't need you to walk Hattie today."

Rose looked over her shoulder when Christian's gaze fell on Dimitri; he was sprawled across her couch with a smug look on his face and she shook her head.

"Clearly," Christian said shortly, followed by, "Sorry I interrupted." He turned on his heel and stalked from the room.

Rose spun around and gave Dimitri an angry glare that rivaled the one he'd given her. "I'm _pissed_ at you," she spouted.

"Shocker."

She ignored Dimitri's mutter in favor of racing after Christian. "Hey!" she called to his back, surprised that he was already halfway to the elevators.

He spun around, arching an expectant eyebrow at her.

She froze, unsure of what to say or why she'd even followed him at this point. Did she even owe Christian an explanation? "I…I'm sorry this was a wasted trip for you," she finally stammered. "I should have called."

"You already said that," he barked.

"Why are you so pissed off at me?" she asked, feeling her own anger rising.

"You know what, Rose? It doesn't matter why I'm pissed off at you," he said, holding his arms out to his sides with a shrug. "What you do is really none of my business."

"Christian—"

He picked his pace back up again and headed for the elevators. "When he fucks you up again, Liss and I will be here to pick up the pieces," he tossed over his shoulder.

Rose's jaw dropped and she hastened toward him. Once she reached him, she grabbed his arm, forcing him to face her. "He is _not _going to fuck me up again, Christian," she said vehemently. "I won't let him."

Christian gave her a weak smile as he reached for her, hauling her against him for a quick hug. "You think you're so tough, Rose," he said softly, his anger seeming to dissipate; Rose found hers quickly following suit. "And you _are. _But the few people who really know you know that there's a hell of a lot more to you than that gruff exterior." He pushed her away, gripping her upper arms. "And it's all in your eyes."

She stood there for a moment blinking up at him. Neither of them said a word as he turned around and continued to the elevator. She stood there until the doors closed behind him, then started the walk back to her apartment. With each step she took, she could feel her anger returning full force. "What the hell was _that_?" she demanded as she slammed the door behind her.

Dimitri must have known what was coming; he was already on his feet. "What was what?" he asked innocently.

"Don't play dumb," she snapped as she stalked to her bedroom. She opened her third drawer and pulled out a t-shirt and a pair of running shorts, not surprised when he appeared in her doorway. "You know exactly what I'm talking about."

He leaned against the doorframe as his arms crossed over his chest. "I kept you a secret once, Roza. I won't do it again," he said flatly.

"Well what if _I _wanted to keep us a secret?" she asked, whipping off the tank top she'd slept in and pulling the t-shirt over her head. Luckily she'd put a bra on after their little interlude in the kitchen.

He shook his head as started walking towards her. She quickly rid herself of her pajama shorts and pulled the running ones on, straightening just as he reached her. "It's not going to happen. If we're going to be 'messing around,' the whole fucking world's going to know about it."

She was so angry her body started to shake.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"For a run," she snapped, trying to sidestep him. "I have to burn off some of this rage."

He grabbed her and hauled her against him. "I can help you with that rage," he said suggestively.

"With the state I'm in, I'm likely to break the rest of your ribs." She flattened her palms against his chest and pushed, trying to gain some space.

"I'm willing to risk it."

"I'm _not_."

With a sigh, he let her go. "Go for your run, Roza," he said in a low growl. "But when you get back, this hot and cold shit stops."

Narrowing her gaze, she stalked past him. She shoved her feet into her sneakers just inside her door, then didn't stop until she reached the sidewalk outside of her building.


End file.
